


Zemblanity

by stayarmytinyzenmoa_l



Series: Zemblanity [1]
Category: NCT (Band), WAYV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Future, Alternate Universe - Prison, F/M, Reader-Insert, WayV - Freeform, nct - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-11-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:35:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 123,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27850978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stayarmytinyzenmoa_l/pseuds/stayarmytinyzenmoa_l
Summary: Future/Prison AUPairing: WayV x Reader [Choose Your Ending]Genre: Thriller/Suspense/Psychological Horror (TW are listed above each chapter)Summary: Sector V exists in a place where the rules of Time and Reality don’t necessarily apply, and inside that Sector are supposedly some of the worst criminals in existence. Your father was the previous Warden, and he has since been replaced by your best friend, Ten. For years, you listened to both of them when they told you not to go in, but with all of your strange dreams that circulated around a forgotten someone in the Sector, you gathered your courage, stole the key from Ten, and made your way into the Sector, where you meet six peculiar inmates. How will your journey end? And will you be able to get out?Imported from my Tumblr: @stayarmytinyzenmoa-l
Relationships: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Reader, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Reader, Liu Yang Yang/Reader, Qian Kun/Reader, WayV x Reader (Choose Your Ending), Wong Kun Hang | Hendery/Reader, Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas/Reader, Xiao De Jun | Xiao Jun/Reader
Series: Zemblanity [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2152509
Comments: 6
Kudos: 48





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Word Count: 6.4K
> 
> Notes: Hey so I know you guys are used to me writing things in lighter tones (see TSTL), so this is me warning you right now that this ain’t one of them. There’s gonna be a lot of dark themes in this, so read at your own discretion. I’ll do my best to mention all the appropriate TWs above without spoiling too much of the story!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Mentions of Abuse, Language

The light filtered in from the open window, just barely grazing the wooden floors of the small home. The home remained undisturbed, save for the gentle swaying sheer curtains. The simple wooden furnitures were plain and cozy, they complimented the atmosphere nicely, and the colors surrounding you were muted in a way that put your mind at ease. You nuzzled your head into your pillow, not wanting to move from this spot just yet. You heard him hum behind you, which was followed by him pulling you closer to his chest, holding you securely.

“Good morning,” he whispered into the crown of your head.

“Morning,” you placed your ear on his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat. He ran his hand through your hair softly, smoothing out all of the tangles, while his other hand laced with yours.

“I miss you…”

“What do you mean? I’m right here,” you sighed happily, letting yourself become more lost in this dream.

“You are now,” he sighs, “but when you wake up, I’ll be alone again.”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t remember me,” he holds you closer. “We’ll find our way to each other again, I promise you. And even if you don’t recognize me at first…” he mumbles the last part, rendering it inaudible to you.

“What was that?”

“ _I’ll make you._ ”

You shot up from your bed, shoving the covers off of you and wiping the sweat from your forehead.

What the _fuck_ was that?

You rubbed your shaking arms up and down slowly, how is it that you could be shaking from head to toe, but your heart wasn’t pumping out of your chest? You felt this strange mix of terror and comfort, which is something that is entirely foreign to you. You looked around you, the dull room settling a more tense feeling of unease than it usually would. You stood up from your bed, not even bothering to fix it, and walked out of your room.

The corridor you walked into was as plain as a moon station could be. White walls with the occasional steel bolts across the side, lined with sliding doors into separate rooms and each with their own hand scanner next to it. Life on the moon, huh? Your father used to tell you that the people on Earth always dreamt about it, but it’s not as glamorous as they imagined it.

So many people died.

Too many.

Sometimes the station felt more emptier than it actually was.

You stood outside of Ten’s room, your hand hovering just in front of the hand scanner. He had given you access long before, if that’s what you were wondering, but this wouldn’t be the first time you had gone here this week, especially at this time of night. You couldn’t help but feel like you were burdening him at this point. Your hand drifted back down to your side, deciding against disturbing your best friend. He was already stressed with the worries of being the prison warden, you shouldn’t bother him with something as trivial as a dream. You turned hesitantly and continued down the corridor, without a destination in mind, really, you just didn’t feel like going back to sleep. After a few minutes of wandering, you finally walked out of the residential hallway and into the main walkway. You stopped for a second, looking around you and taking in the vast never-ending space around you. It was a bit ominous to think about, all that prevented you from suffocating was a seven-inch barrier of glass. But at the same time, the stars were a sight you’d never grow tired of seeing. You sat down, dangling your legs over the metal walkway, and looked at the Earth in front of you.

The first thing you learned when you moved to the moon was that all the stars that you would gaze upon were just masses of gas burning light years away, they were a wonderful array of science that was just as fascinating to learn about as it was to look at. Even knowing this, it did little to take away from the calming feeling of being surrounded by them, the feeling of safety that came from it. It was remarkable, really, a feat in and of itself.

But being surrounded by the stars always left you alone to your thoughts. Thoughts that made their way to the forefront of your brain and remained. And so you began to think of your dream again. Wherever you were wasn’t on the moon, certainly. It didn’t look familiar at all. A single room cottage with natural furniture that was far away from the loud noises of society, and was, most importantly of all, bright and inviting. It was, quite literally, your dream home. Then there was the obvious case of the person you were with, you could barely even remember his voice, all that remained was the overwhelming sense of peace that it filled you with, a feeling you hadn’t felt in such a long time. The feeling that everything was going to be alright.

“I knew I’d find you here,” Ten’s voice cut through the atmosphere. You heard his make his way over to you, his heavy boots causing the suspended walkway to shake slightly, then you felt him sit next to you. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yeah… I just wonder if I’ll ever go back to it.” You swung your legs slightly. “I’ve been in this station for so long that I can’t remember a single thing about the Earth.”

“Well I’m sure it’s nothing special,” Ten nudged your arm slightly. “Considering our parents did everything in their power to bring us here.”

“Is it weird that I feel like I’m forgetting something important?”

“I mean, you usually forget a lot of important things, (Y/N),” he teased.

“Rude,” you rolled your eyes. “Did you just get off shift?”

“Yeah,” Ten stretched his arms. “I’m tired as hell. I went to your room to complain, but you weren’t there.”

“You should go to bed then, don’t worry about me,” you turned to him.

“And leave you here? Hell no, your dad would rise up from the grave and strangle me.”

“Right,” you laughed. Ten stood up first and held his hand out to you. “Ten, I’m not going back to sleep.”

“Whoever said I’m taking you back to resident hall?” His lips quirked up and you took his hand, letting him pull you up.

Ten led you to the front of the one place you were never allowed to go to, the entrance to Sector V. The large metal walls loomed over you, and the deep red lights held a sense of terror over you. You were used to this sight, the overbearing tension, and the sinister air around this entrance. This was always as far as you got, this is where you’d say goodbye to your father before he departed for work, and now it’s where you see Ten off every day. You both stood, looking at the front entrance. He had the infamous red card in his hand, and he twirled it around his fingers slowly, as if debating on letting you in or not.

“It’s scary, isn’t it?” You spoke first, and Ten nodded. “Do you regret accepting the job?”

“Somedays, yeah.”

“I’m sure it’s not too late to change, you can work in Records like me.”

“Oh _hell_ no, Mark works there.”

“Hey! Mark’s nice,” you scold him. “But why only somedays?”

“I’m going to tell you something and you need to promise me you won’t tell anyone else, alright, (Y/N)?” Ten turns to you and grabs your shoulder, forcing you to look at him too. There was this sullen look in his eyes, and you couldn’t quite place why.

“Of course, you can trust me.”

“No, (Y/N), I don’t think you get it,” Ten shook his head. He paused, piecing together his sentences in his head. “It’s just… there are some days where I have to remind myself that _I’m_ the warden.”

“What do you mean?” You took a cautionary step back, it’s not that you didn’t trust Ten, it was just that every sense in your body was telling you to run for your damn life. But why would you run away from Ten? You’ve known him for more than a decade now.

“You know, I used to make fun of your dad for being so protective, always telling us not to play near the entrance, always telling us to stay away, but I get now. And I’ve been thinking about a lot of things since I became the new warden,” he looked at the entrance, then back to you. “Do you actually remember coming to the moon?”

You opened your mouth, fully ready to say yes, but when you really thought about it… _No_ , you didn’t remember coming here.

“Of course we wouldn’t remember, Ten, we had to have been toddlers at the time.”

“Okay, but isn’t it weird that we don’t have any records of it?” He pushed the red card back in his pocket. “It’s just weird, (Y/N), and it’s been stuck in my mind for weeks,” he shook his head.

“Again, I don’t think it’s too late to change jobs, Ten, I’m worried about you,” you said. Ten placed both of his hands on your shoulders now, holding you in place.

“(Y/N), _never_ go to Sector V, in fact, don’t even fucking think about it.” He was dead serious, there were very few instances in your life where you could say that you’d seen Ten this sullen, and this was just added to that list of now three times. “Please.”

“Okay,” you nodded your head slowly. You were worried about him, really. He retracted his hands and looked at the entrance again.

“Let’s go back.”

“Yeah, okay.”

~  


A loud alarm rang throughout the residence hall corridor, waking everyone up at the same time. You reluctantly dragged yourself out of bed, repeating the same process as every day before this one. Monotonous, rehearsed, _boring_. You pulled on the white uniform you had to wear every day and combed your hair neatly, tucking the loose hairs away from your face to “optimize productivity.” You exited your room, watching everyone walk past you to start their days. You followed the crowd, taking your time to get into the Records room in Sector A.

Once you made it in, you moved to your cubicle and started your day. You logged into your computer, waiting for it to do its thing, and it redirected you to the Records application. You opened your email, reading your assignment through a few times, before routinely going through various files left behind from yesterday and sorting them correctly.

“Hey, (Y/N),” Mark waved at you and sat in the cubicle next to you. You gave him a quick smile and continued your work.

“Oh, hey, did Ms. Shin…?”

“Yeah, she died last night,” Mark checks off a few things on his check board. “Sucks, huh?”

“What happened?”

“No clue, Moonsight, probably,” he shrugs.

Moonsight, scientifically _Arcus Optolunaris Insanitatem_ and often shortened to _Optolunaris_ , was a new disease that emerged after the moon had been completely colonized. The name derives from a side symptom of the disease, which is the whitening, or fading, of the irises around the patient’s eyes. Although you didn’t know the details on how it came about or the cause behind it, you did know that it had something to do with the gravitational pull of the moon combined with UV rays from the Sun, even though the walls did well to protect against that, the massive change in force between Earth and the moon isn’t something to be ignored, considering its effect on typically much older people, although cases in the younger population aren’t impossible. It starts with physical changes, for example, the irises change colors, so does the patient’s hair, and in some cases the patient’s postures. The next, and the most dreaded, to come are the psychological changes, common dementia in most, intense delusion in others, insanity in some, or, in extreme cases, all three. It finally ends with the rapid deterioration of bones, which is the result of the much heavier force pushing down on people. There’s more details to it, of course, but that was the general run down. The prognosis was never one to envy, you were essentially just waiting to die.

“That’s scary,” you crossed off Ms. Shin’s name on the paper population record and clicked the ‘Deceased’ box on her ID.

“Lee,” your supervisor passed by, tapping Mark on the shoulder. “What happened to the files from 2019?”

“2019? I just finished those the other day,” Mark frowns, “sir,” he quickly added.

“Yeah, well guess what, idiot, they’re not there,” your supervisor grimaced. “Go ahead, pull them up.” Mark looked at you from the side, shaking slightly, and you tried your best to give your silent support, something the two of you always did when your jerk of a supervisor would single you out. You pulled 2019 up too, just in case your supervisor was trying to start bull shit in the office again, but no records appeared. In fact, it looked more like they were sponged clean rather than not completed at all. Even the default format wasn’t there.

“I’ll work on them again, sir,” Mark bowed his head and the supervisor walked off.

“What a dick,” your eyes followed your supervisor until he was out of sight. “You good, Mark?”

“Just upset that I’m going to have to go through all of 2019 again, it’ll take me a good two weeks to get all of those files back up,” he groaned.

“I can help out, Mark, all I’m doing is populace.”

“Nah, it’s fine, (Y/N), I don’t want the supervisor to chew you out too,” he sighs. “Late nights to come, I guess,” he rolled back into his cubicle, ending the conversation.

You were just about to continue where you left off when you remembered what Ten told you the night before. You looked over your shoulder to your supervisor, who was busy scolding Donghyuck, probably because the guy was playing video games instead of working again, and you turned back to the computer in front of you, typing in the year 2004, the year you supposedly moved to the moon.

> **_Processing…_ **
> 
> **_No records found for the year ‘2004’_ **
> 
> **_Enter another query_ **

You stared at the three lines of green text on the computer before you rolled out of your cubicle again.

“Mark.”

“Hmm?”

“Do we have any records from 2004?”

“2004?” Mark looked confused, but he searched up the year anyways. “Huh, nothing on the computer. There’s probably some information in the old records room though.”

“Where’s that?”

“Oh, uh,” Mark pauses for a brief moment. “Sector V.”

“Ah, so it basically doesn’t exist,” you frowned.

“At most it was repurposed into a cell,” Mark says. He rolls back into his cubicle and continues working.

And again Sector V taunts you. There should have at least been flight or landing information on this file for 2004, but there were none. Curiosity got the better of you.

> **_Processing…_ **
> 
> **_8000 hits for the year ‘2003’_ **
> 
> **_Select file…_ **

You cleared the search and started your next one.

> **_Processing…_ **
> 
> **_10000 hits for the year ‘2005’_ **
> 
> **_Select file…_ **

And the plot thickens. You cleared the search and pulled the main records tab back up and continued working, going through each file with precision so you wouldn’t make mistakes.

Today you were in charge of Colony 127’s population status. You came across your file, which was rather simplistic given the fact that your job was just in Records. Just like all the others, it had your name, gender, age, height, weight, year you came to the moon, job, and status listed on it. You clicked the ‘Alive’ box and the next person emerged. You went through the list from the Data Collectors, checking off the appropriate boxes for each person. A small twinge of sadness would course through you each time you crossed a ‘Deceased’ status. But you realized that something was… _off._

There was someone missing on this list.

You quickly typed in Ten’s name into the database.

> **_Processing…_ **
> 
> **_2 hits for ‘Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul’_ **
> 
> **_Select file_ **
> 
> **_\- Identification_ **
> 
> **_\- Sector V_ **

You clicked on ‘Identification,’ being sure to update his status to ‘Alive’ before continuing your job. You can’t make mistakes, or else someone would have to clean up your mess, and you didn’t want to hassle someone with it. You just couldn’t believe that you missed your best friend’s name on the paper records twice.

But, like usual, curiosity got the better fo you. You searched for Ten’s name again, and you let your cursor hover over the last option. You though for a few moments, there was a high probability of this just being a quick overview of his job as warden.

You clicked it.

And your computer short circuited.

“Hey, what happened?” Mark rolled out of his cubicle again and looked at your frizzed out screen.

“Oh, I spilled some water over it, it should be fine soon, don’t worry,” you nodded to your coworker and he mirrored you before returning back to work. You rebooted the computer. That’s something you won’t find out any time soon, you suppose. Your computer turns back on and redirects you back to the populace page, and you decide to make sure that all of the data you just entered was correct for a third time.

Your work day continued like usual. You updated the populace files, got lunch with Mark, finished updating the populace files, ordered coffee, and wrapped up work. This was the same routine you did every day and you’re not exactly upset about it, you’d rather be doing this than being on the colonization team or, god forbid, the prison team. Once you were completely done with logging out and what not, you stood up from your cubicle and clocked out, waving goodbye to your coworkers, and made your way back to your residence hall, going with the flow of foot traffic of other moon citizens on their way home. You looked at the clock, looks like you went over time again, you’d have to skip dinner again if you wanted to wake up in a good mood tomorrow.

Not that you’re complaining, though, you’d take any excuse to not stand in the horrid dinner lines of cranky residents who just got off work.

You stepped into your room, changing into your night-wear and laying down on your bed. This was your life, basically. If you were lucky, you’d go out for a bit with Ten or Yeri, but you haven’t had a day like that in a while. You shut your eyes and relaxed your muscles, letting sleep overtake you.

~

You were sitting at the wooden dining table, a simple bowl of soup before you. Through the corner of your eye you spotted the bed from the previous dream, it was made neatly, almost as if it was untouched. You stared at the bowl, not really knowing what to think about it.

“I miss you,” a voice behind you spoke. There it was again. That lovely thing that came with it, that lovely thing that relaxed you, that put you to peace. But at the same time it was intoxicating, it was a sound you never wanted to stop hearing. There was something uniquely familiar about it, and you wanted to know more. You wanted to know who it belonged to, _no_ , you _needed_ to have the closure of knowing. How could a voice be so familiar yet so unknown at the same time?

“I’m right here.”

“No, you’re not,” his voice was distant. You turned your head back, you were alone in the home. “You don’t remember me.”

“Who are you?”

“I was your everything,” the voice seemed to be in front of you now, but when you turned to the other chair, it was empty. “And now you don’t even know what I look like.”

“I’m sorry,” you didn’t know what else to say.

“We’ll find each other again, I swear to you,” the voice was right next to you now. You felt two hands rest on the back of your chair, applying enough pressure to make his presence known. “And you _will_ remember who I am, even if I have to force you to.”

“Where will we find each other?” You were genuinely curious, you had been having dreams similar to these for the past few weeks, sometimes they’d occur night after night, like now, and sometimes there’d be a number of days in between.

“Sector V.”

~

You really don’t know what came over you.

It was three in the morning now, and you were standing in Ten’s room, the latter being fast asleep after his shift as warden, and here you were, staring at the daunting red card that hung just next to Ten’s desk.

There was only one key to Sector V, it was for safety reasons, they say. Only one person goes in and, if the card were destroyed, even better. The criminals kept in Sector V were supposedly the worst, those who had done the most inhumane of crimes. They were people you should be _very_ afraid of, people who you need to watch out for. Well, luckily, you don’t have to, they’re locked in Sector V.

You had changed back into your uniform, fully intending to not go back to sleep, or more specifically, fully intending to do something you should never do. You reached out for it, the piece of plastic that had the answers to all your questions just barely touching your fingers.

“(Y/N)?” Ten’s voice was tired.

“Did I wake you?”

“Yeah, what’s wrong?”

“I don’t think you’d get it,” you continued to stare at the card. You heard Ten shift in bed.

“Come here,” he reached for you, still half asleep. You tore away from the card and moved next to him. It was something the two of you had always done since you were younger, you remembered. It was something the two of you would always do for each other. “Tell me.”

“They’re just strange dreams, is all,” you didn’t keep secrets from each other, that was just a _thing_. Even if you knew he was keeping a huge one from you, no doubt entrusted to him by your father. The secret of Sector V. And with every dream you’ve had, the need to know the truth just became stronger in you.

“Dreams,” Ten yawned. “Are just that.”

“Right,” you nodded. You heard Ten’s breathing slow back into a steady rhythm, signaling to you that he had fallen back asleep. Your eyes narrowed on the red card again, mocking you from its easy to reach spot. You turned to Ten once again, being sure he was asleep, before stepping away. This time, in some burst of courage, you took it in your hands. You could practically hear your father screaming from Heaven or Hell, you’ve yet to figure out which one he went to. You placed it into the pocket of your uniform and walked out of Ten’s room. Your legs moved on their own, taking the memorized path to the entrance of Sector V. You stood in front of the large doors. They seemed less dark today, less scary. The red lights weren’t as powerful as the night before, they were much softer actually. You thought for a moment, ‘ _do I really want to do this?_ ’ A sudden fear struck you. As long as you held the card, you’d be able to leave, you assured yourself, as long as you kept it safe in your pocket, you would also be safe. You slid the key down the reader and watched the smaller light turn green, signaling that the door was open.

You took a deep breath and pulled it open, walking into the steel lined walls of the forbidden sector.

It wasn’t as horrifying as you hyped it up to be, actually, it was more damp than anything. A bit dark, but that was expected. The corridor was lined with cells that had been slightly frosted over at the edges. Each cell had a bar code on it with a certain sequence of numbers inscribed above them. You walked up to the first cell, the serial number 20 10100 on it. You looked inside and you noticed it was empty. You didn’t know if you should be frightened or relieved by it. You really didn’t know what you should’ve felt like, actually, all of this seemed anti-climactic. _This_ is what your father and Ten tried to keep you away from?

“Ten, I thought your shift was over,” a voice rang from the end of the hallway. You jumped up, backing away from the cell and looking down the corridor. You saw a man, he had blue hair, interestingly, and he was wearing the same uniform. He looked just as surprised to see you as you were.

“Oh, um… hello,” you waved at him, and he rose an eyebrow. “Who are you?” You couldn’t help but ask, he was wearing the same uniform as you, which means he somehow had access to Sector V, which shouldn’t have been possible. You noticed the slight twitch in his eye when you asked him the question though, as if he had expected you to know him.

“Qian Kun.”

“Oh, hello, Qian Kun, I’m (L/N) (Y/N), may I ask how you got in here?” There was only one key, and you had it.

“I believe I should be asking you that,” he took a step forward, but when you stepped back, he stopped.

“I… work here,” you lied, you lied and you hoped that he didn’t catch on. “Now you.”

“I work here too,” he says. He points towards down one of the intersecting corridors. “Over there, specifically. What’s your job? Ten didn’t tell us about anyone being added to the staff.”

“Oh, I’m just a Recorder,” you answered him. “I just needed to get to the Records Room for a minute.”

“I know where you’re talking about, let me walk you,” he offers.

“You can just tell me the way to go and I’ll find it,” you insist.

“Make two lefts, one right, go straight for five intersections, make another left, go down two intersections, make three rights, then—”

“Actually, it would be very nice if you’d show me the way, thank you!” You jogged up next to him and bowed your head.

“Alright, this way,” he started walking and you followed closely enough to keep him in your sight, not wanting to get lost; however, you did your best to keep a considerable distance away from him. It’s not that you didn’t trust him, it’s that you didn’t want to take any chances. You had never seen him before, after all. He did mention Ten, which had to be natural considering that he was the warden, and they had to be close somewhat based off of the initial tone in Kun’s voice, and this relaxed you slightly. “I noticed you looking into the cells, they’re empty right now since we usually give the inmates time to walk around Sector V,” Kun explains.

“Oh, is that so?” You were a bit surprised, why would they allow the so-called “worst” criminals to run amok like this? Well, to be fair, Sector V is highly reinforced, especially with the singular key card.

“You sound surprised.”

“It’s just that I’m surprised they allow the inmates out of their cells,” you tried your best to not sound offensive, just in case.

“Yes, it is interesting. As long as we don’t run into them, we should be fine. They’re usually somewhat diplomatic, I haven’t known any of them to engage, but with a new face present, one could never be too sure,” Kun remarks. You continue to walk in silence, you were glad that you ended up asking Kun to show you the way, with all of the twists and turns, you’d never be able to find it on your own, let alone remember the way out. But with every step you took, you found yourself more at ease with Kun, a strange but comforting sense of familiarity washing over you. For once in this huge building, you felt safe. “Here we are, Records Room.”

“Thank you so much!” You bowed your head again.

“I’ll wait outside for you so I can walk you back, alright?”

“Sounds good,” you entered the room and closed the door behind you.

Sector V’s Records Room was different than the main Records Room, it was much more antiquated. Where as the main one had computers and hard drives, everything in here was written on paper. The files in this room, to your knowledge, should be collected from the years 1990 and on. Your hands ran along the sides of the dirty metal shelves, reading the years and volumes until you finally reached 2004. You reached up and started dusting away the fronts of the files, reading each one to find what you were looking for.

“Flight records,” you let out a relieved sigh. But there was one problem, it was on the top shelf. You’d go out to call Kun, but you didn’t want to bother him anymore than you already have. You took a deep breath in and reached for the folder. After being unable to reach it, you held on to one of the metal bars, tugging on it slightly to test if it was stable, then you put one foot on the lower shelf, being sure it would be able to withstand the pressure, then you pushed yourself up and reached for the file with your other hand.

 _Crack_.

“Oh no,” you closed your eyes tightly, as if it would reduce the pain that was about to come, but when you felt someone grab onto your waist and pull you away, you knew that it wouldn’t come. You opened your eyes again and looked at the mess you made, the shelf had toppled over completely and all of the papers were in disarray, not to mention the cloud of dust it kicked up.

“Are you alright?” Kun brushed the dust off of your uniform.

“Yeah, thanks,” you pulled away from him and looked up.

“You should be more careful, the shelves here are old,” he reaches down and pulls the steel shelves back up. “I’ll take care of it, don’t worry,” he holds his hand out to you and you place the papers you had picked up in your hands.

“You came in right on time,” you leaned down and started picking up papers.

“You should’ve called me, this room is so old that pretty much everything is falling apart,” Kun clicks his tongue. He shovels the files in his arms and pushes them into the shelf in some chaotic order. “Is this the one you needed?” He hands you one binder and you read the words on it.

“Flight records,” your eyes lit up and you took the folder. You walked over to the table in the room and opened it up but your hopes fell as fast as it had risen. “It’s empty.”

“Maybe the papers fell out, I’ll help you look for it,” he collected a pile of papers from the floor and placed them on the table. “I would have to go through all of these again anyways, so I can keep an eye out for them while I go through them.”

“Really? That would be a huge help,” you smiled.

“Of course, you came all the way to Sector V to find these, they have to be important,” Kun nods his head.

“I’ll help sort through the papers too, it’s the least I could do,” you picked up a separate pile and started going through it. How hard could it be? You pretty much did the same thing every day except with a computer. You had to admit, there was something about feeling the loose paper in your hands that was charming, it was very different in terms of the mundane keyboard you were used to. Kun stretched his arm up and turned on the overhead lamp, providing little but necessary light over the dusty table. “Thanks.”

“Mmhmm,” he pulled two stools out from under the table and pushed one to you. He separated each paper with ease, as if he had done it many times before. “If you don’t mind me asking, why are you so adamant on finding the records from 2004? That was a while ago, no?”

“Yeah, my supervisor was asking for them, and when my partner and I couldn’t find it, he got really upset,” you lied. You told yourself not to get used to it.

“Partner?”

“Oh, my cubicle partner, his name is Mark. We usually check each other’s work just in case. Our supervisor’s a horrible person,” you scoffed. Kun put on a tight lipped smile and nodded.

“I definitely understand that,” he said vaguely.

“Come to think of it, we’re missing some pages from the 2019 flight records book too, but Mark is in charge of those.”

“2019, huh? I don’t think you’ll find those here,” Kun shakes his head. “Nothing has been stored in this room since 2010, I’m afraid.”

“When Sector V was repurposed.”

“Into a prison sector, yes.”

“Right,” a silence fell between the two of you. “How long have you been working in Sector V?”

“Good question,” Kun closes a folder and pushes it to the side, grabbing another empty one as well, “it must have been a while now. I’ve stopped counting.”

“Why would you be counting?” You looked up for a moment, but then got back to work.

“It’s a bit of a punishment, don’t you think? Working in the forbidden Sector V? I started working here after it was repurposed, after all. I wonder what I did wrong?” He hummed. “I think I found what you’re looking for,” Kun’s voice sounded disappointed.

“What’s wrong?” You looked up from the file you were just putting back together. Kun held the paper up, but his brows were knit together. “Oh, you’re kidding me, right?” You took the ripped document into your hands. At the top, in red ink, read the words ‘2004 Flight Records,’ but, thanks to your horrid luck, the document was ruined. A good majority was stained with water, leaving the ink unreadable, and whatever part wasn’t touched by the water was ripped off.

“I can keep looking for a much cleaner copy, I don’t think the old record keepers would have let this slide. Every other paper we’ve seen wasn’t in as bad condition as this one,” Kun picked up another stack.

“Yeah, let’s keep looking,” you grabbed more empty files and opened them, continuing your work.

Needless to say, you and Kun finished going through the files, and neither of you found a better copy. You were disappointed, all that work and no result. You slid each file back into its proper place on the shelf, being sure that they were packed tightly together so they wouldn’t fall out. Kun slid the flight record file out again and took the barely-salvageable paper out.

“It’s not much, but maybe you could restore it somehow,” he handed it to you and you took it, folding it nicely and placing it in your pocket. “The ink looks runny, but it’s not impossible.”

“Thanks again, Kun, I appreciate it a lot,” you watched him push the file back into its proper place.

“Shall I walk you back to the entrance?”

“That would be perfect, thank you,” you followed him out of the Records Room and back into the hall. You walked a bit closer to him now, feeling much more comfortable with him than you originally did. You were about halfway through when Kun pushed you behind him, holding a finger to his lips, imploring you to stay silent. All you could do was nod your head and open your ears, listening to the surrounding atmosphere. It was very faint, but you heard chains moving down the hallway, and the sound of something heavy being dragged was accompanied with each clatter of metal and the screech of iron across the floors was unmistakable.

“We’re going to take a detour, alright?”

“Okay,” you responded, but he didn’t move.

“Actually, it might be smarter if I asked him to leave myself. Wait here, okay?” Kun looked to you and you nodded. He smiled weakly and walked down the intersecting hallway, towards the sound, and you were left alone.

You felt more scared than when you originally came in. The knowledge of Sector V’s inmates just… walking around, unhindered, scared you. Knowing that you were alone, at least for the time being, didn’t help either. It felt like it had been hours since Kun left. You hadn’t heard a single thing since he left, no clattering of metal, no voice, nothing. You shuddered, fearing the worst. Then, just down the other conjoined corridor, you heard traces of laughter. Maniacal, almost, and you felt every hair you had stand. The sound got closer, you could tell, even if its volume hasn’t rose above the initial whisper, you heard it. You looked down the way Kun went, but there were still no traces of him or anything for that matter.

You took off running down the original path, figuring that you’d at least try to remember the way, but with each twist and turn you felt like you were losing your mind, every hall looked the same, the same lights, the same doors, the same pipes, everything was the same. You covered your ears, the laughter still bouncing around your head, and it was now accompanied by the sounds of dripping water and screaming steam pipes. Everything was a sensory overload for you, to say that you were overwhelmed would be an understatement. You closed your eyes, hoping that when you opened them you’d find yourself in at least a different corridor.

Instead you found yourself colliding with someone. He grabbed onto your arms to steady you.

“Why didn’t you come back?” You kept your eyes shut, you just knew you were about to break down from the pure tension alone. He didn’t respond. “Kun?”

“Xuxi.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 4.2K
> 
> Notes: And the plot thickens… Also, I thought about it a little more, and I figured that Character Profiles won’t actually be out for a while, I’m going to have to rework them to get rid of all the dumb spoilers I have on it, but they’ll come out eventually!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Insanity, Implications of a Toxic Relationship, Language

You’re sitting on a white-wood swinging chair, but it would creak every time you swung, so you did your best not to make too much noise, not wanting to disturb him inside. He had been taking a lot of overnight shifts recently, you realized, and your job as a school teacher wasn’t really doing much for you. You were both saving up for a family, not wanting to start off on the wrong foot, after all, and it was a slow process, but you both knew that the result would be worth it.

The rising sun was dreamlike, and the chirping birds that were perched on the Oaktree were singing beautiful songs that you wished you could record. You watched your dog walk around the perimeter of the yard, next to the white picket fence, and glance over at you every so now and then. You sighed and took a sip of your coffee, falling further into the dream. You almost spilled it when your dog came bounding towards the door, barking happily and wagging his tail cutely.

“Good boy,” you heard a voice, but you couldn’t see anyone.

“Did I wake you?” The words came out on their own.

“Nah, I woke up myself,” whoever it was, he was sweet. “How are you, (Y/N)?”

“Getting along, and you?”

“Getting along,” you could feel him smile. You felt the swing get heavier next to you. “I miss you.”

“I’m right here.” This was the one reoccurring factor in your dreams. This conversation. It was the same, you know, but depending on the dream, the tone of who you were talking to was different, almost as if you were speaking to a different person each time. Although you never saw faces, you could distinctly pick out that there were at most seven different people you were talking to, but never at once. And each dream had a defining characteristic about them that would be a surefire hint to who you were talking to.

“You’re not,” his voice was distant. “Sucks, I miss you a lot. I hope you’re taking care of yourself, you’ve always been so clumsy. I’m worried for your safety, you know.”

“I’m fine.”

“Are you?” You felt him get off of the swing. “Even if you don’t remember me… We’ll find each other, like we promised.”

“And when we do?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” You felt him looking at you. “I’ll make you remember.”

~

It was that dream that this man reminded you of. That dream that came to you a good few weeks ago, if your memory served you correctly. You had no clue who this person was, but the brightness of that dream came rushing back to you when you first noticed him.

But when you really looked at him, when you took your time to trace out and memorize all of his details, that’s when you noticed, and you felt your breath catch in your throat. White hair, light-colored eyes, the symptoms were all too familiar to you. But he didn’t look like he was entering the next stage of it, in fact, he looked completely healthy to you otherwise. He let go of your arms and looked behind you.

“What are you running from?” He asks. You hesitated, even taking a step away from him, part of you feared that he was one of the inmates, but he didn’t look it at all. “You can trust me, I’m not one of them. I just work perimeter.” He quickly flashed an ID card and you relaxed.

“I just,” you thought about how to say this without sounding completely ridiculous, “I heard some of the inmates approaching, and I got scared, is all.”

“You got scared?” He frowns. “What are you doing here anyways?”  


“Oh, I work in Records,” you explain, “I just came here to get a file, that’s all. But I think I got lost on the way.”

“I can show you to the exit, it’s not good to stay in here any longer than you should,” he offers. You look behind you. “What’s wrong?”

“I actually left someone behind…”

“Kun? He’s fine,” Xuxi insists. “I think you’re much better off having me escort you than him. I bet he told you the inmates are “diplomatic,” or some crap like that. No, they’re insane. They’re in here for a reason, you know,” he takes a step closer to you. Again, you take a step back.

“Then shouldn’t we go back for him?”

“He’s fine,” Xuxi takes a step closer to you again. “Just… trust me on this. I’ve known Kun for a very long time,” he continues. You looked down the corridor again, and when you heard the distant laughs again, you made up your mind.

“I just want to get out of here,” you walked towards him this time. Xuxi smiled for a brief moment before having you follow him down the corridor. “I ran hoping I’d find the exit at some point, but I think I just got more lost.”

“Luckily for you, you were actually heading in the right direction,” he waits for you to catch up to him and he began taking noticeably smaller steps to accommodate for your height. You continued to follow him down the corridor, with each twist and turn confusing you more than it should. You had to be honest, it felt like you’ve turned more corners than the first time. But you’re making more progress with Xuxi than you would’ve done alone, so for that you’re at least somewhat thankful. Differently to Kun, you felt somewhat safer with Xuxi, you couldn’t really explain why, it was just the general aura he gave out. Like you could trust him. But when you heard the screeching metal for a second time that night, Xuxi was very quick to catch on to how uncomfortable you were. “Hey, it’s alright. I’ll keep you safe, okay?” His voice was softer than it was before.

“Are we near the exit?”

“Almost there, just hold on for a little bit longer,” Xuxi kept scanning the area around the two of you each time you’d reach an intersection, no doubt looking for the other inmates, and every time you’d look at him he’d be in a deep thought, he was debating on something to himself, it was written on his face.

“We _are_ almost there, right?”

“Yeah, definitely,” he nodded his head, and his expression fell flat. “Don’t worry, you can trust me,” he repeats. Xuxi continued to lead you down the maze of hallways. With each step you took with him, the distant sounds of who you assumed to be the inmates got quieter. Maybe the path seemed longer since he was taking detours to avoid the inmates? If he was, you would have to find a way to show him your gratitude at some point.

“You’re sure that Kun is alright?”

“You do know that Kun is one of the inmates, right?” Your blood ran cold. It came out of his mouth rather abruptly, you figured that it was this fact that Xuxi was debating in his head. Was that true? Now that you think about it, Kun never showed you an ID of any sort, he just told you he worked there, and that he had been here for a very long time. “You didn’t know? I thought it would have been obvious. He’s wearing a straight jacket.” Again you thought back to Kun, how kindly he had treated you, how much he had helped you in the Records Room, was he really one of _them_? You thought back to the white uniform, now that you thought about it, the bottoms of his sleeves were ripped, actually, a good majority of that uniform was frayed at some odd or end. How could you have missed that? You had to have just been glad to see another person. Then you looked at Xuxi, or more specifically, the back of Xuxi, he was walking in front of you, but he remained vigilant for the other inmates. He was stiff, like he hasn’t actually been in a relaxed state for years, he was waiting for something, expecting for something to jump out at any moment.

He also wasn’t one of _them_ , was he? No, he showed you an ID card, inmates wouldn’t have those on their person.

_Right?_

Why else would be be so attentive? You shrugged it off.

“I didn’t know.”

“He might be one of the worst ones here,” Xuxi mumbled. He turned to you. “Sorry, this must be scary. Are you alright?”

“I just want to go home at this point,” you shook your head. “Ten was right, I should’ve never come here.”

“You know Ten?”

“He’s my best friend.”

“Best friend, huh?” Xuxi mumbled it, but you caught on to a tone of dislike. It would be obvious that these two would know each other, since Ten is the Warden, if Xuxi just worked perimeter, then he would be working under him, right? 

Your worries shifted to your best friend, you stole his card key. You took the one key to get into Sector V. You didn’t even think about the consequences that would fall upon him, actually, you didn’t want to think about it. You recalled the previous Warden before your father, you recalled what happened when he made even the slightest mistake of leaving the lights on in Sector V after his shift. God, how could you have been so stupid? Now your resolve has been strengthened, you need to get out of here now. And you need to clear your best friend’s name before something like _that_ happens again, you won’t let it happen to him, you care too much. And oh how he must be worrying right now, he’s smart enough to piece together that you stole the key, knowing him he should be tearing his hair out by now.

“Yeah, since we were little,” you continued to explain. “He must be worried sick.”

“Sure he is,” Xuxi scoffs. You were about to argue back to him, until the two of you turned into a dead end. “No, no, _fuck_ , why is this here?!” He knocked on the wall, then he kicked the panel near the bottom of it, multiple times, and each kick got progressively harsher until he finally backed off.

“What’s wrong?”

“That _fucker_ , I knew I shouldn’t have trusted him,” Xuxi grumbled. “That damned Warden, he told me that if I followed this route I’d be able to escape.” There is a sudden slam behind you, and you turned around to the _wonderful_ sight of a now _closed_ off room. The lights around you flashed red, and a siren loud enough to ring against your skull emitted. You covered your ears, but it did very little for the sensory overload that sent all of your senses spiraling. You couldn’t actually tell because of the lights, but it looked like the room was narrowing?

“(Y/N) get behind me!” You didn’t have the will to argue right now. You didn’t even want to question why or how he knew your name, you just wanted to get the hell out for now, you could always ask him later once you’ve successfully survived. You followed Xuxi’s order and clambered to reach him, but with every step he got further. “God, I hate these ones the most, stay there! I’ll make my way to you! Whatever you do, don’t move,” Xuxi’s voice was becoming drowned out, but you were able to make out the most important details above the sirens.

“What do I do?!”

“ _Just_ _don’t look down_!” You strained your ears to hear him now, he was getting further, but you could tell that he was trying his best to walk over to you. You looked above you, the ceiling had extended up, and a bright light shone above you that flashed red in rapid successions, and with that paired with the four chains that extended beyond your vision, it was all a sight that made you fear the worse. The siren had completely taken over your thoughts at this point, all you wanted was for it to turn off. You shut your eyes.

“Go to your happy place,” you recited your father’s words. The very same ones he would tell you whenever you were scared. He told them to you when you first traveled to the moon, when your mother had moonsight, and when you watched the previous Warden’s punishment. They were always the words that comforted you when you needed it the most. “Go to your happy place…”

~

You’re sitting in a family room somewhere, you could hear a dog barking in the backyard, and you heard the faint sound of chattering in the front yard, they belonged to people you couldn’t recognize, but at the same time you did. The room was cozy, the colors were muted, like you were looking through a sepia filter, but you knew that they had to be in brighter tones in actuality. The TV was on, but you didn’t recognize the program playing, nor could you decipher what the characters were saying, but you easily made out a few familiar faces on it. Ten was one of them, he was yelling at one of the characters, but for some reason it looked more like he was yelling at you.

“You really don’t remember me,” the voice came from the doorway, but you couldn’t see anyone. He sighed, and you felt the couch seat next to you shift. “Where did I go wrong, (Y/N)?”

“What do you mean?”

“I _love_ you, I really do, what did I do to deserve this?!” The couch shifted again, he wasn’t next to you anymore, and you couldn’t tell where he was. “What did I do?!” He’s never been aggressive with you, not to your knowledge, this was a first.

“I don’t…”

“You don’t remember,” his voice was menacing. He scoffed. “Right, how could you remember? You don’t even remember my goddamn name!” The vase in the corner was thrown against the wall, the array of porcelain fell onto the hardwood floors, a red liquid poured out of it, and as soon as it bled onto the spot in front of you, you shut your eyes quickly, feeling every muscle in your body tense. You felt your breathing pick up, your extremities began to shake ever so slightly, you were afraid, you knew it. But you felt two hands on your shoulders, and a presence in front of you.

“Breathe, (Y/N), just focus on my voice, okay?”

“Okay,” you listened to him count, you listened to him say the words ‘in’ and ‘out’ and you calmed yourself down, you relaxed. You opened your eyes again and saw the porcelain gone and the mess cleaned.

“I’m sorry,” his voice was in front of you. “I’m so sorry, (Y/N), you don’t deserve this, you don’t deserve an idiot like me.”

“Don’t say that…” Your lips formed a name, but no sound came out.

“Your father hates me.”

“I know.”

“Don’t you hate me too? I took you away from him, from your life before, don’t you miss it?” You felt him lean forward on you, and your arms moved themselves, wrapping around his form. You looked down to him, you couldn’t see his face, but he was dressed in a suit, the tie had been undone, and the collar was dirtied, but he was there. He rested his head on your chest, and you held him closer, sighing into the top of his head. Black, that was the color of his hair, and it imprinted itself into your mind. This was the only defining characteristic you had of him.

“No.”

“How could you say that? You don’t even remember what I took you from, you don’t even remember what I brought you to.” He laughed again, but it was rather pathetic compared to the other times you’ve heard it.

“I don’t.”

“But you will, just not now.”

“Then when?”

“In Sector V, I will make you remember.”

~

The sirens were even louder now, they pulled you out of your thoughts, whether that is a good or bad thing you are yet to see. So much for going into your happy place, instead you were just reminded of that nightmare. Dreams that were so vivid, you were always tormented with it. Maybe they were even more vivid because you wrote them down in that small worn journal you and Ten found when you first moved into your new unit. Maybe since you wrote them down it became easier to remember them after the fact. But when you felt two arms wrap around you, cradling you close to him, you heard all the sirens die out, the red faded into a softer hue, time, almost quite literally, came to a stop.

“You’re okay,” Xuxi held you securely. “Don’t look down, it’ll just scare you, just close your eyes and focus on my voice, okay?”

 _‘Focus on my voice,’_ it rang in your head. His hands moved down to yours, and he held them tightly.

“I’ve got you, you have nothing to be afraid of, (Y/N),” he spoke in a gentle tone, and it was all you heard. “I need you to take steps in front of each other, imagine you’re walking on a tightrope.”

“Okay,” you took the first step, you felt the ground beneath you shake, but not enough to throw your balance off entirely. You took the next step, the ground was just a bit more unstable, but you kept your eyes shut, not wanting to look down for even a second, nor wanting to look around you for that matter, the earlier glimpse of the chains surrounded by red was more than enough for you. Every time you felt the ground wobble, you felt Xuxi squeeze your hands, as if steadying you and reassuring you, and it was all you needed.

You must be pathetic, you’re putting all of your trust into someone you just met, someone who had led you into a dead end. He couldn’t have known, you were able to read that much in his expression, at least, he was just as surprised as you. But did Ten really lead him here? Did he really tell him that this was the way out? Of course Ten would’ve told him how to get out of here if Xuxi asked him to, you yourself want to get out of here after what you believe is a few hours, imagine actually working in this hell hole? A horrible fate indeed. But why would Ten trick Xuxi, why would he fool a fellow worker into a dead end or, more specifically, a trap? You heard a door slide open, and you felt a quick rush of air, then you felt Xuxi release your hands.

“Alright, we’re good now,” he says. You opened your eyes, and you were standing in the corridors of Sector V again. You never thought you’d say it, but the sound of steam escaping the pipes that lined the walls was actually comforting. You looked behind you and gasped.

“I walked on _that_?!” You pointed to the narrow chain.

“Yup,” Xuxi smiles. “You did great,” he rubs your head affectionately. But your eyes were trained on the abyss below the chain, then your eyes moved back to the platform you had to have been standing on.

“Oh my god, I survived that,” your legs felt like they were going to give in at any point. You looked at Xuxi, who himself was looking down the hall, listening for distant sounds. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you,” he answers. He nudged his head down the hall before you could inquire further. “The exit should be near now. I’m sure you want to go home.”

“I really do, let’s go,” you pressed on, following Xuxi closely.

“There shouldn’t be anymore hiccups, I’ll just have to detour to the main entrance.”

“There’s more than one?”

“Of course, if something happened to that entrance we would need a backup to get out of here,” Xuxi explains. “I just have no clue why Ten would set up a trap in front of it…”

“Trap?”

“It’s meant for the inmates, Ten has them set up throughout the Sector somewhere. They mimic the other inmates’ cells. They’re designed not to be opened by the inmate themself, which is why we were able to get out without too much trouble. So as long as they’re not with someone who doesn’t belong in that cell, they’re good to go,” he continues. “That one, in particular, belongs to 20 10100.”

“Oh, where is he?” You shivered, whoever had to reside in that cell must be dangerous.

“Not here, luckily,” Xuxi paused before he nodded. You nodded too, and looked down the hall, your path to freedom, but then you noticed it was blocked. Blocked by someone with blue hair and in a white jacket.

“(Y/N), step away from him,” Kun was breathing heavily, he had just been running. “He’s dangerous.”

You looked up to Xuxi, who held a hand in front of you.

“Don’t listen to him, (Y/N), don’t forget what I told you.”

“What _you_ told her?! And what exactly is that, Huang Xuxi? More lies? You’re great at that,” Kun clenched his jaw, but when he turned to you it immediately softened. “(Y/N) he’s one of them. He’s one of the inmates.” Kun points to Xuxi. You took a step back and Xuxi growled.

“And so are you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Kun took a step forward. “(Y/N), I know you can see it too, he’s in the beginning stages of Moonsight, you can’t trust him. The delirium should have settled in by now, (Y/N), please, you have to trust me,” Kun implored you, you could see the how much he was begging for you to listen to him in his eyes.

“Delirium my ass, I’m still more sane than you ever were, Qian Kun,” Xuxi moved closer to Kun. The two were at an intense stare down, and tension was thick enough for it to be suffocating. But Kun had a point, you had seen first hand what Moonsight did to people, and if Xuxi really was in the second phase of the sickness, then he really couldn’t be trusted. You moved closer to Kun, and you saw him sigh softly, you could easily watch how the relief spread through his body. But Xuxi only tensed. “He left you, (Y/N), I haven’t. Stay with me, I’ll guide you to the exit.”

“He’s lying, you’re nowhere close to it, (Y/N)! You’re closer to his cell than the exit.”

“You can’t actually be buying this bullshit, (Y/N).” You looked between the two, the new possibility of _both_ being inmates hung over your head. You could choose one, and risk being kept here forever, or even killed, or… you turned your head down the intersection behind you. Then you ran. You ran faster than you have before, you didn’t look back, you couldn’t. They had to have been on your tail, you could hear them shouting your name, but _fuck_ that. You’ll find your way to the exit eventually, and you’ll fucking do it alone if you have to. But first you have to shake these two off. You kept running until you came across a staircase.

‘Boiler Room,’ you read the sign over and over again, debating if you really wanted to run in there. It could be a blessing or a curse. You could hide there until they left, or they could follow you in and corner you.

You decided to go with the former.

You quickly descended the stairs, Kun and Xuxi’s voices were still distant, there’s no way they could have noticed that you came down here. You stopped at a narrow walkway, steam surrounding the entire area and even rising from the metal floors. The steam tanks around it looked like they were going to blow if enough pressure was added to them. Once you heard Xuxi’s voice again, you pushed through the steam and ran to the other side, standing at the clearing briefly until you spotted a door. You threw it open and hid inside, silently hoping that neither of them would find you in there, as it would be a surefire game over for you.

So when the door opened in front of you and you clamped your hands over your mouth to stop the scream from coming out, the person in front of you was very confused. Most likely because there was someone unknown hiding in a closet, you presumed. But he looked over his shoulder, picking up and Kun and Xuxi’s voices, then he looked down at your trembling form. Then he closed the door and locked it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 4.8K
> 
> Notes: In the wake of all the AMMs, more information has been revealed! And more information will be revealed in this chapter! Please don’t forget that this does not represent the Idols true personalities or actions in anyway, and that this is a Thriller/Horror story. Thank you!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language

The room was monochrome. Shades of black and white were all that filled your vision, they were on the walls, the bedding beneath you, and the furniture in the room. In the distance, you heard the metric tapping of a Newton’s Cradle, and outside you watched the raindrops patter on the window, it all did well for the ambiance. You had to be sitting in a penthouse bedroom, you figured, with its wide windows and its city skyline view. In stark contrast to the greyscale, you were wearing a scarlet red dress, it reached to just above your knees, and you spotted what you assumed to be your heels cast to the side. You heard footsteps approach.

“What are you still doing here?” He asks. You look towards the voice, no one, as usual. “I thought you said that you were going to leave.”

“I never said that, I just said I needed a moment,” you shook your head. “You know I don’t exactly fit into this lifestyle.”

“It’s suffocating, I know,” he sits next to you. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think that they wouldn’t take to you kindly, it’s my fault, I should’ve planned for it.”

“Don’t say that, I should’ve worked harder to blend in, you’ve already done so much for me, I need to pull my own load too,” you frowned.

“You did great, it’s just the higher executives that are pieces of shit,” you heard him laugh.

“I should’ve expected to get some stares… Isn’t it executive taboo to marry your secretary?”

“That’s just an overused drama trope,” he gets up, “they’ll never understand how much you mean to me, and I don’t expect them to either.”

“I’m sure they won’t even if they tried.” You sit in silence for a moment.

“I miss you.” And the cycle continues.

“I’m right here.”

“For now, at this moment, you are. Even when you’re asleep I have to get lucky to even get a glimpse of you,” he huffs. “The other guys are too greedy.”

“Hm?”

“Do you remember me?” You could feel him staring at you.

“No.”

“I figured as much,” he sighed. “I’m not supposed to know.”

“Know what?” You felt him smirk.

“I’ll tell you later, my love. When you really remember me,” he says. “Lucky for you, I’m an impatient man.”

~

You heard a new pair of footsteps.

“Xiaojun,” they belonged to Kun. “Where is she?”

“Who?” You assumed that the person who had opened the door was Xiaojun.

“ _Her_.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Kun, but if it’s the same girl who Xuxi’s been calling out to, I can guarantee you she’s not in here,” Xiaojun’s voice was cold. “I think I'd know if there was someone in my cell, plus, no normal person would be able to stand these temperatures, don’t you think?”

“You’re right, she would’ve run out as soon as she took a step in this place,” Kun sighed. “If you see her, tell me immediately. She could be in danger.”

“From who? _You_?” Xiaojun’s tone was mocking, but you could hear some truth in it.

“God forbid if Yangyang found her.”

“Oh, I forgot about him. How do you know her, anyway?” Xiaojun asks.

“I don’t need to tell you that,” you heard the annoyance in Kun’s voice. “If you find a girl about this tall, tell me right away.”

“Yeah, yeah, Kun, good luck finding her then,” Xiaojun dismissed him, implying that he wanted Kun to leave. You heard Kun sigh again, but then you heard his footsteps rescinding. You relaxed against the box you had propped yourself up against, and you heard the door unlock, but it didn’t open. You stared at the knob, waiting for it to shake or twist open, but it never came. There was no movement, just silence. You stood up and opened it yourself. Xiaojun was sitting on the floor, staring at the steam tank. “You should get out of here, he’ll be back, you know.”

“I figured.”

“You can’t hide in there forever, you’ll overheat.”

“I know,” your lips twitched downwards.

“You’re in quite the situation,” he chuckles. “I’m sure you know I’m one of the inmates, no point in lying to you…” he rolls his eyes away from you and back to the steam tank, a steely expression settling on him again. 

“Why did you help me, then?” You had to ask, he could’ve just opened the closet and handed you over, but he didn’t

“Aren’t you scared? I saw the way you ran in, Kun’s not that bad you know, Xuxi maybe if you piss him off, but Kun’s much more reasonable,” you weren’t fond of his tone. It was as if he was trying to demean you. He had to have caught on, because he frowned. 

“Wouldn’t anyone be if there were two criminals chasing them down?”

“Fair enough. I’d show you the way out, but I’m sure you have more than enough reasons not to trust me,” he says. He pulls himself up and walks over to a metal desk on the side of the boiler room. He opened one of the drawers and pulled a piece of paper out. “It’s a Thursday today, that should be the right map,” he mumbles.

“Does it matter?”

“The layout of Sector V changes daily, I usually just walk around once a month during open hours to figure it out and draw a map from it, I hate running into Yangyang, so this is how I do it,” he says. “I’m sure you could read a map, get out of here before it becomes Friday.”

“How will I know it’s Friday?” You looked down to your watch, it hasn’t moved since you’ve entered Sector V.

“ _Good_ _question_. You’ll hear it. Listen for a click, it’ll be hard to hear the further you are from the boiler room, but it’s there,” he shrugs. “Just leave as fast as you can, that’s your safest bet, I’ll try to redirect Kun and Xuxi for you, those two are annoyingly persistent,” he sighs. You look at the map, but you continue to eye him suspiciously.

“I’ll ask you again, why are you helping me?”

“Look, (Y/N), I owe the old Warden a favor, this is me paying up since the dumbfuck died on me.”

“You knew him that well?”

“Yeah, he was annoying, but he saved my life once, so I have to repay the favor,” he looks off. “Just get out of here before I change my mind, okay?”

“Alright, geez, I’m leaving,” you folded the paper into your pocket.

“Oh, and (Y/N)?” He called out to you. You turned to him and he held up a familiar red card between two of his fingers. “You forgot something,” he quirks one of his brows up and smirks. You clenched your jaw.

You _really_ don’t like him.

You walked up to him and took the red key card, pocketing it immediately. It must have fallen out while you were running away.

“It wouldn’t be good if you just left that here, you know. That’s your only way out.”

“And why would you give this back to me?”

“It’s not like I could use it, and like I said, I owe the old Warden a favor,” he shrugs. “See you.”

“Bye,” you turned away from him without another word. Making a straight beeline for the staircase that originally brought you down here.

You continued to climb up, and up, and up, and up, and up… you get the idea. Were the stairs always this steep? You could’ve sworn that there were only a few steps the first time you descended them. You looked around you, something you should’ve done the first moment you got here, but all you saw was pitch black around you. You glanced up towards the illuminated exit and you continued your way up. You knew something was up when you opened the door that was finally at the final flight of stairs, because you found yourself standing face to face in front of Xiaojun again.

“Got lost already?” He jeered. “That was fast.”

“Don’t flatter yourself,” you grimaced. You turned around, noticing that you had walked out of the storage closet that you were previously hiding in. He looked behind you.

“Oh, you activated one of the Warden’s traps, _great_ ,” he rolled his eyes. You looked behind you at the stairs that descended into the dark. “God, these ones are so annoying,” he rubbed the back of his head.

“I’ll just go back down,” you turned to walk back in, but he stopped you.

“Don’t bother, you’ll just be stuck in a loop of never-ending stairs. Trust me, I know. The Warden had to come and grab me himself to return me to my cell,” he says. “Hold on, I can fix this,” he walked over to the metal desk again and pulled out a toolbox. He kicked open one of the control panels on the wall and started to pull wires and twist knobs. You heard a loud _click_ resound through the boiler room, no doubt through Sector V too. Xiaojun closed the control panel with a sharp _clank_.

“What did that do?”

“Two things. One, the infinite staircase is gone. Two, that map I gave you won’t work anymore,” he held two fingers up, then put his hand back down. “I just had to reset the Sector layout patterns. Unfortunately, that just changed where all the previous traps were, but at least you’ll be able to leave.”

“Well,” you shrugged. “I’ve been running blind since I first got here anyways,” you shook your head.

“Kind of weird that it didn’t put you in the cycle right away though,” Xiaojun hums. “Usually when Xuxi or I fall into it we’re walking for what feels like hours.”

“Is that so? The same thing happened when Xuxi and I were in the Cell Trap, I got out pretty easily.” Xiaojun turned to you, completely shocked at what you just said

“Oh, _fuck_ , you left first didn’t you?”

“Yeah?”

“No wonder he’s still walking around. (Y/N) I don’t know if he explained it to you but the only people who fall into those traps are the inmates themselves, if someone else got caught up in it, and as long as they leave at the same time the inmate does, then they get out of the trap easy.”

“Oh so that’s how it works,” you looked away for a moment, you were pretty sure that you would’ve clocked him if you saw the satisfied look on his face right now, and you really didn’t want to piss off one of these inmates. They’re in here for a reason, and you had to remind yourself of that.

“Oh, darling, we’re all inmates in here. You’re not going to meet a _single_ staff member right now,” he laughs. He points at your pocket. “They come and go with the Warden. And considering that the Warden is missing his one and only key, you’re not going to be meeting anyone other than us six inmates.”

“Great, it would’ve been great to know that before I came in here,” your voice wavered. Oh fuck no, you are _not_ going to cry in front of this guy, he’ll never let you live it down. Or even live, you don’t know.

“What, did Ten not tell you?” Xiaojun looked surprised, but then his face fell into realization. “ _No_ , you didn’t! You stole that card, didn’t you?!”

“No!” You took a step away from him, but when he rose his brow again, you faltered. “Maybe.”

“Holy shit, you’re going to die in here.”

“Wow! Thanks! Like I didn’t _figure that out_ by now, genius,” you started getting defensive.

“You don’t even know _how_ to open the door, huh? Guess what, princess, it’s not as easy as swipe and go.”

“What?”

“You _really_ think that the engineers who made this place would make it _that_ easy to get out of a highly secured prison. If it was as easy as that we would’ve all ganged up on Ten and stole the card to get out by now.”

“What do you mean?” You spoke in steady breaths.

“(Y/N), darling, there’s a second code to open the door from this side of Sector V. And with that second code there’s a lock pattern you have to memorize to even _get_ to the second code panel. Not to mention that it’s different for each person, it’s based off of your ID serial number which I’m sure you know how hard it is to get to that, Miss Records.” He was right, everyone’s ID serial number, including yours, was only available in the computerized records. And considering that you haven’t seen a single one since you entered this hell, it’s far _far_ away.

“You’re kidding me.”

“Sure, the prisoner who’s been in here for way longer than you could _imagine_ is kidding you on how to get out of here.”

“Kun told me that I could’ve gotten out…”

“Which way did you go from the Records Room?” He covers his eyes with his hand before placing his hands back in his pockets.

“How did you—”

“Just answer the question.” Xiaojun looked at you with bored eyes, but you could tell he was processing every word you said, every move you made. You thought back to that moment when you both left the Records Room.

“Right.”

“Yup, there you go, he wasn’t even leading you to the exit,” Xiaojun scoffs. “God, you’re so dense. You didn’t even realize that it wasn’t the same direction you entered, really? Give me that map,” he held his hand out and you shoved it into his hands. He unfolded it and moved next to you, pointing to the Records Room.

“You were here, the Records Room is a fixed location, it never changes, but the pathways to it does,” he traces it to the exit, which was to the left of the corridor on the map. “You would’ve had to take that route to get to the exit, but even if you got there you wouldn’t have been able to leave since you’re an idiot.”

“Screw you.”

“Now, if you go to the _right_ ,” he ignored your last comment. You watched his finger trace over the route on the crudely drawn map. He skipped all of the corridors that led to dead ends and the ones that had storage rooms, and came to a stop at one location. “You end up here.” He circles his finger around an unlabeled mark.

“Which is…?”

“Interrogation chamber.”

“What’s in there?”

“You don’t want to know.” He folded the map and threw it back on top of the metal desk. “I don’t know what could have distracted Kun from taking you there, but whatever it was you should be thankful for it. There’s no telling what would’ve happened if you both got there. It could be something good, could be something bad, maybe both, and maybe neither. Either way, you’re safer just not going at all.” He says. 

“Iron, we heard iron, and he told me that he was going to go ask them to leave, then he left me alone.”

“Iron? Sicheng helped you?” He looked shocked. “Huh, did you see him?”

“No, he was down the corridor.”

“Weird,” Xiaojun frowned and shook his head. “It’s rare for that guy to be out, he usually doesn’t care about free hours.” He walks over to the desk and begins to sort it out again with his back turned to you. He showed no signs of continuing the conversation, it looked more like he wanted you to leave more than anything really.

So why were your legs stuck in place? Why did you feel this need to reach out to him again? What was it that was holding you back from leaving?

You felt the tears start to well up in your eyes.

You were going to be stuck in here forever.

No one was going to come in and save you, even if they wanted to.

“Xiaojun? Why did you shift the patterns?” You heard someone shout from below the staircase. You turned back to the storage closet that still contained the previously infinite stairs, and you stopped breathing altogether.

“Xiaojun,” you said his name slowly. Xiaojun turned to the door and his expression dropped, he looked around him, but there was no place for you to hide this time. Kun stopped midway up the stairs when he noticed you, then his pace picked up. 

“(Y/N), don’t move, I just need you to listen to me!”

“Xiaojun!” You gripped onto the metal rail behind you, the panic that built inside of you was starting to overtake you completely. You wanted to run, you really did, but if you moved now you’d surely just trip over yourself. Then, right before Kun could run into the room, Xiaojun slammed the door shut and locked it. Kun twisted the doorknob while banging on the door.

“Xiaojun!”

“Go back up the stairs, it should take you back up to the main corridor now. You need to run like hell, (Y/N). Even if you can’t fucking leave, find a place to hide!” Xiaojun leaned against the wooden door that was splitting at the edges. You took a second to process what he said, there was too much happening at once. “Go!”

“Okay, alright,” you stumbled over your words, but turned quickly, running down the metal walkway. However, you didn’t miss the last thing he said, he must’ve said it under the impression that the screaming steam pipes would hide it, but you heard it loud and clear, you felt it reverberate, and you felt the sorrow behind it, the longing, the regrets, you felt all of it at that one moment.

“ _You really don’t remember me_.”

Those words continued to echo in your head while you ran. Oh how you wanted to turn around and say something to him, something to console him or at the very least to put his mind at ease, but you didn’t have the time. You couldn’t stop to question him unless you wanted Kun to drag you away somewhere. You were already past the row of pipes when the door burst open. Xiaojun looked at you one last time before he cranked up the steam, filling the boiler room completely. You were on the first step of the flight, and you made every step count, blocking out the shouts behind you.

Then you found yourself in the main corridor. The same sound of distant steam and drops of water were all that was a part of the ambiance. You turned behind you and looked down the stairs, you couldn’t go back there, that much is certain. With a heavy mind, you started walking through the empty corridor. You really couldn’t tell why, but everything seemed quieter right now. Maybe you were used to it, already. Or maybe your senses were focused on listening for Kun or Xuxi, but when you heard the familiar _click_ sound throughout Sector V, you had a feeling that Xiaojun was the one behind it. He had to have changed the layout again, probably to keep Kun from getting to you. Xiaojun left a huge impression on you, you had to be completely honest there, and he must have known your father well. You didn’t know if you should hate or thank him, but he must have some virtues if your father chose to save him even once. With that, you wondered what he meant when he said that he owed your father. It was a true shame that you’d never get to ask him, let alone repay the favor.

Yes, it is a true shame.

You continued to walk further and further down the hallway with no destination in mind, obviously, you really just wanted a place to rest, is all. You were exhausted, and rightfully so. You had been running around the way too big of a facility for god knows how long on maybe two hours of sleep, you were sick of all of this. You wanted to go home, but you couldn’t. Even if you decided to prop yourself against the exit, one of the inmates would find you and that would be it, you assumed. You stopped in front of a peculiar door, you didn’t know why you stopped here specifically, actually, but you did. You looked up and read the bronze nameplate.

“The Warden’s Office…” you recited. You turned the knob and walked in, closing and locking the door behind you. And you laughed. It was a sad excuse of one, but you couldn’t help it. Your situation was just so helpless that it was just funny. When you looked around this room, you couldn’t help but feel pathetically nostalgic. How could one room remind you so much of your father? The leather chair, the disgusting green colored accents, even the dumb bookshelves just screamed your father’s name. Yet, at the same time, how is it that this room perfectly reflected Ten?

 _Ten_.

You felt your eyes water again, here it comes, you’re surprised you held it in this long. You sat down on the small couch and covered your face with your hands, it really didn’t do a single thing, though, you still felt your tears slip down your face and fall onto your lap. You sat there and you sobbed.

God, he must feel horrible. No, you know he is feeling horrible right now. His own best friend stole the key to Sector V and she’s stuck in there, surely he knows that if what Xiaojun said was true, and now he can’t even get in to save you. You fucked up. That’s all you could say to yourself.

You are stuck in here.

Forever.

And there’s no way to escape.

~

You’re back in this monochrome room. Of all the dreams you’ve had, this has to be the one you saw the least. The first place you looked was the window, it was raining again, as it always was in these particular dreams. The skyline was lit up with mixes of colors that were pleasing to the eye, especially when combined with the rain, and to the distance you heard the Newton’s Cradle, moving in perfect sync to your heartbeat. You were under the blankets of the large, and dare you say _comfortable_ , bed, and you could tell that someone was sitting at the desk just on the other side of the large bedroom. His back was turned to you, but you were able to pick out his dark brown hair and his slender build from where you were.

“Come back to bed?” You propped your head on your palm.

“It seems I got lucky tonight,” his hands cease moving on his laptop’s keyboard. “How are you, (Y/N)? Are you taking care of yourself, my love?” His tone was gentle, loving even. He wasn’t even looking at you, but you could already tell that he had visibly relaxed at your voice.

“I am.”

“That’s good, you’re good,” he nods and continues to type away at his computer. But soon his right hand moved up and tangled itself in his own hair, and he began to laugh. “God, I’m pathetic. I can’t even turn to face you, my love.” His shoulders began to shake.

“That’s my curse, isn’t it? What did I do for this to happen? I did it all in good faith, my love, I promise.”

“I know you did.”

“That’s what you’re wired to say, isn’t it? You really don’t have control over what you’re saying to me right now, don’t you, (Y/N)?” His voice was unstable. “I did it for you, and look at where it got me. Locked in a cell, that’s where. And the few times I get to talk to you neither of us can see each other at the same time. Isn’t it pathetic? We’re in such a horrible situation, yet I always look forward to the sparse nights I get to even hear you.” He shuts the top of his laptop and lets out a weak breath.

“Couldn’t you just tell me who you are?”

“Wouldn’t that be so easy,” he leans against the back of the chair. “I love you, so _damn_ much that I feel like I’m going insane. And you know what’s funny?” He turns his head to you slightly, enough so that you could just barely make out his jawline, but not enough for you to see his face completely.

“What?”

“They don’t even know,” he scoffs and reopens his laptop, continuing his typing. “I’m the only one who knows about this situation. I know what they know, but they only know what they themselves know. Confusing, isn’t it? But it’s the only way I can explain it. How I wish I can just tell it to you, but if I did there would be some unforeseen repercussions… And I’ll have to start again.”

“No… I get it,” you repeated what he said to you in your head, yes, you understand, surely.

“There will come a day again where we can talk to each other face to face, but right now, I will be content with just this. It’s all I can do. If I mentioned this to the others, they’d be at each other’s necks after my own, I’m sure. So I’ll keep this secret to myself, even from you.”

“It must feel horrible though, right? Keeping such a huge secret to yourself?”

“If you remembered who I was I would’ve told you, but you don’t. So it’s just my secret and mine alone for now. But it’s all for you, my love, just remember that for me, alright?”

“I worry for you.” He turned his head slightly again, and you saw a faint smile on his face. It was small, barely even there actually, but in it was enough love for a lifetime.

“You’ve always said that to me, you know. But it’s alright, it’s my turn to worry for you. Our roles have been reversed, I just ask that you trust me, and all will end well. Do you promise me? To just have full trust in me?”

“I promise.”

“That’s all I needed to hear,” he turns back to his laptop and continues to type. “Go back to sleep, love, you need it.” And with that, the conversation, and subsequently the dream, ended.

~

You looked up from your spot on the couch, staring at the bookshelf lined with paper files, and you stood up and took a random one from its spot, just out of pure curiosity. When you opened it, you felt this uncanny feeling of happiness from it.

“What’s this doing here? And in… this?” You smiled and pulled out an old picture of you from when you were younger. You eyed the younger boy next to you, that had to be Ten, you figured, it was so long ago you barely remembered. You looked through the other photos in the photo book, that wonderful feeling of nostalgia wrapping around you. And you continued to turn through the photos, until you came to a stop at one that jumped out to you, one that you didn’t recognize.

It was most definitely you, but… it was _you_. As in you from right now. With Kun. Walking out of the Records Room. You looked at the two photos underneath it. You and Xuxi walking down the hallway. You and Xiaojun in the boiler room. And all the photos underneath it were of _you_. The printer next to you turned on and started to make a picture. You heard your heartbeat thump in your ears, each slide of the ink cartridge matched the beating of your heart, and when the picture finished, the printer ejected it onto the floor, landing upside down. You picked it up slowly, afraid of what was under it. You flipped it quickly, it’s the same as ripping off a bandaid.

It was _you_.

Standing in this very room.

With someone in the corner.

You turned your head to the coat rack, now noticing the person hiding behind it, and you felt the scream rising in your throat.

“Wait! Don’t scream! Kun’s going to find us!” He walked out on his own and held his hands up, looking hurriedly at the door. You clamped your hand over your mouth, he had a point. You both turned to the door when you heard a knock at it.

“Yangyang, come out. I know you’re hiding in there. You always come here when you get yelled at.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 4.7K
> 
> Notes: And another chapter is finished. I’m sure you all know the drill. This one’s a bit of an interesting one, I believe. I hope you all enjoy this! According to the 30 of you who did my little survey, a good majority of you all are looking more forward to Zemblanity than TSTL, so this one will be a bit higher on priorities, I hope you all don’t mind!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Minor Violence (Inflicted onto (Y/N) but nothing serious aka no blood or open wounds), Implied Violence between inmates

Where are you? Where is this?

You sat down on the couch and looked at the dull room you were sitting in. It was bleak, colorless, unfinished. When you looked out the window you saw the busy streets of a city, with passing people chattering about seemingly nothing, only gibberish was clear to you from their conversations with no discerning words whatsoever. Just white noise, that’s all you heard. To your right was a simple kitchenette, and in front of you was a TV set, strange, you feel like you’ve seen this program before. But regardless, no noise was emitted.

“Hey, when did you come in?” You turned to the front door of the apartment. No one, as usual.

“It’s over.”

“What? What happened?” He made his way to you and sat on the coffee table, you assumed.

“I don’t know…” you shook your head and held it between your hands, your gaze sinking down to your lap. “One minute everything was going alright, and the next he tells me that we’re through.”

“It’s for the better, (Y/N),” he says, you feel him rub the top of your head. “You two always fought, I can’t think of a time when you didn’t, actually. This is better for you, (Y/N), he can’t hurt you anymore.”

“But I still love him,” you hiccuped. Why were you doing that? You had no control. Was this a dream?

“No, no, you don’t. You just stayed with him and called it love,” he sighs. “Look at what he’s doing to you! (Y/N), let me help you pick up the scraps. He ruined your life. He ruined _you_. Made you drop everything for him, and now look at what you have left.”

“I…” his name formed on your lips, but again no sound came. “What do I even have left?”

“You have me, your best friend? I’m always here for you, you know that,” he says. “And you should know, I’ll never leave you. Even if you don’t remember who I am, I’m always here.”

“Huh?”

“You know I never forgave him. I don’t even think he knows it’s me, or remembers me at all.”

“Wait… what are you talking about?” You looked up.

“Don’t worry, I’ll fix everything for you. All you have to do is rest, okay?” You felt two hands settle on your shoulders. “You can trust me, more than you could have ever trusted him.”

“I… alright,” you didn’t understand what was going on.

“It’s not the best time for me to say this, but you’ve come here more often than you’ve gone home, (Y/N). Let me prove to you that I could do better than your deadbeat ex, alright? Give me a chance.”

“Okay.”

~

“Shh,” Yangyang stared at the door, and you both stood in silence. But when you heard the dangling of keys, you both turned to each other with frantic expressions. “Under the desk,” He whispers, and you could only nod and rush to hide underneath it, a huge panel covered the bottom, luckily, so as long as you made no noise, you’d be safe. You heard Yangyang lean against the desk when the door finally opened, and you held your hands over your mouth again, you were still crying from earlier, and you tried _so_ hard not to make a single sound.

“Yangyang, you can’t just hide in the Warden’s Office.”

“How’d you even get the keys to this place anyways?”

“How’d you get yours?”

“I asked first,” you heard the annoyance in his voice. Then you heard papers slide against the desk.

Of course, the pictures. If Kun saw the picture of you in the Warden’s Office, it’s over. You heard Kun make his way in, and Yangyang moved behind the desk and sat on the chair, moving in just slightly to avert suspicion away from the desk. He handed you the file of pictures and you took it, holding it close to your chest. You saw Kun’s feet stop by the bookshelf.

“There’s something missing,” he points to the gap where the file used to be. “Yangyang.”

“It wasn’t me! God, you think everything’s me, I don’t know, maybe Xiaojun took it! Or even Ten, this is his office, he can take things too,” Yangyang hunched over the desk and you heard him drumming his fingers against it.

“What are you hiding?” Kun’s voice was filled with disappointment.

“Well, shit,” Yangyang slumped against the chair. Next thing you knew it, you heard something shatter and Yangyang grabbed your hand. 

“Yangyang!” Kun’s shout was loud enough to ring against your ear, and if that was enough it was the drawn out groan of pain that followed it that stuck with you.

“Let’s go!” He yanked you out from under the desk and you both broke out in a sprint. You looked back for a second and saw the glass vase that was on the desk in pieces around Kun, and you did your best to ignore the scarlet red flowing onto the cement floors. You paid no attention to how Kun pulled the large glass shards out of his arms, and you definitely paid no attention to the way he scowled at Yangyang, the visible anger in his eyes seared itself into your brain. It went beyond the anger of being attacked, there was something more in it, something more venomous, more dastardly.

When you had initially met Kun, you never thought you’d see this expression on him. He painted himself as a calm person, a mediator almost, but this is something you couldn’t forget.

“What did you do?!”

“Slowed him down! Do you still have the file?”

“Yeah,” you held it up and he took it.

“I know just the place to go, he won’t follow us, and if he does he can’t follow us out!” He makes a quick left and you stumbled slightly, but he held you up and you kept running. “Stop!” He holds a hand in front of you right as Xuxi stepped into vision in the next intersection over, and at the obviously loud command, he turned his head and looked straight at you.

“Friend or foe?”

“Foe,” you nodded your head quickly.

“This way!” You both ran to the left as soon as Xuxi broke into his own sprint. “Shit, fuck Xuxi and his long ass legs, we’re going to need to make a few detours!” Yangyang drags you to the right. You both continued to run down Sector V, making various twists and turns in an attempt to avoid the much larger inmate, and you saw the way Yangyang’s eyes lit up when you both stumbled upon a dead end.

“What?! Aren’t we supposed to be running?!” You hissed.

“Come on, come on, come on, come on,” he stared at the dead-end expectantly, then you remembered.

“Cell Trap.”

“Yup,” he banged his fist on the wall. You couldn’t tell if he was a genius or an idiot, there was literally a 50/50 chance that you’d be dead or alive. You’d both be either stuck in his cell or Kun’s, or even Xuxi’s if he was close enough, which is not an experience you want to go through again.

“You’re crazy.”

“Just trust me!”

“(Y/N)!” You heard Xuxi shout from somewhere close by.

“Why isn’t it activating?!”

“The one time I need to fall into a trap,” Yangyang kicks the bottom panel on the wall.

“There you two are!” Kun stops running at the end of the hall.

“Perfect timing,” Yangyang shoves his hands in his pockets right on time for the cell trap to kick in. Gone were the steel piped walls, and in came white. White cushioned walls which had slash marks littered across them and sparking light-fixtures above you. “And… Now!” He grabs onto both of your shoulders from behind and pushes you right past Kun and towards the entrance of the cell, you pushed on the door handle and slammed it behind you, leaving Kun to bang his fist on the thick glass pane of the cell. He was very visibly furious, shouting some incoherent thing to Yangyang, you figured it couldn’t have been anything too serious given how Yangyang was mocking him from outside. But when Kun turned to you, he looked more desperate, mouthing something over and over again.

Maybe you were going crazy, but it looked like he was telling you to run away.

“Ah, that was great,” Yangyang finally settles down. 

“Are you sure we can just leave him in there?” You eyed Kun, who was making a motion with his hands for you to turn around. You did, but you just saw Yangyang shrugging his shoulders. 

“Eh, don’t worry about him, he’s a bit,” Yangyang points to his head and gestures that Kun’s not all there. “Anyway, we should beat it before Xuxi gets here.”

“Agreed.” You looked at Kun again, who was just shaking his head at this point, and finally followed Yangyang down the hall.

You two made it a good distance away from Kun’s cell, you were a bit guilty about locking him in there, but it was either that or possibly get killed. Then there was the problem of Xuxi, you feared that you just pissed off a very dangerous person, and for that you were more than afraid for the worst. And as for this boy who was skipping next to you, you had _no_ idea how to read him. He was hiding in the Warden’s Office, for one, and he was hiding from Kun, for another. Just who is he, really? It’s quite obvious that he’s an inmate, that’s for sure, but he didn’t seem as unstable as the others did, save for Xiaojun. No, in fact, he seemed perfectly normal. 

“Hey so uh… why were you in the Warden’s Office?” You decided to ask first.

“Oh, yeah, I was hiding from Kun. I pissed him off, but what’s new? Guy hates me,” Yangyang sighs. “I didn’t even do anything wrong. I just punched Xiaojun.”

“Uh…” you didn’t know how to respond to that, but his indifferent expression made you think twice about questioning it. Maybe he wasn’t more stable than the others. “I see.”

“How about you?”

“Oh, it was my dad’s office.”

“No way. Ten’s your dad?!”

“What?! No!”

“But you just said—”

“I know, sorry, my dad was the previous warden,” you amended your statement.

“Oh!” Yangyang gasps. “That means you’re (Y/N)!”

“Yeah, that’s me,” you nodded your head. It wasn’t like you didn’t hear Xuxi yell it a couple of times, but you figured that Yangyang just didn’t hear it. He stared at you for a second, and you saw the moment when everything fell into place for him.

“Whoa, crazy,” he walks ahead of you. “Never thought I’d see you.”

“Well, I technically shouldn’t be here.”

“For real? Yeah, I heard from Xiaojun. You stole Ten’s key.”

“Yeah, and now I can’t get out,” you shook your head.

“Yeah, you fucked up there, (Y/N),” Yangyang clicks his tongue.

“You don’t have to remind me,” you sulked behind him. You watched Yangyang swing the file of your pictures next to him, just enough so that the pictures wouldn’t fly out. “Yangyang.”

“Mm?”

“Why do you have that file?”

“This file?” Yangyang held it up. “I figured that we shouldn’t leave it in there, or else Kun would’ve known where you were, but I guess I don’t need it now.”

“We could put it back then?”

“Maybe later, it’s so far away,” Yangyang laughs. 

“Were you the one who printed those pictures?” You were treading on thin ice and you knew it. Would you even be able to outrun him if he said yes? You were the one trying to keep up with him when you were initially running away from Kun, was it even worth it?

“Nah. They were already printing when I got there.”

“What? How’s that possible?”

“There is a computer here, but it’s in the interrogation room. So whoever it was must be in there,” Yangyang explains.

“Can’t we go there then?” Yangyang stares at you with a blank expression. You decide not to push the question. He turns into a certain room and you follow him in. You didn’t even have to ask, this was the med bay. The hanging IVs and the rows of different medicines inside the cabinets made it clear. Each cabinet was labeled with numbers, numbers that you recognized to be on the cell doors at the front of Sector V. It made sense for them to be organized this way, each with varying amounts of bottles in them. You noted that Xuxi’s had the most medications in them, while Xiaojun’s had the least.

“You looked kind of tired, so I figured I’d show you where some actual beds are. They’re not the best, but they’re plenty more comfortable than the couch in the office.”

“God, I am tired,” you shook your head. “But even with that, I don’t think I’d be able to sleep in here. It’s too scary,” you admitted. Yangyang opened up one of the cabinets, reaching up for the extra pillows and blanket inside of it.

“Oh yeah?” Yangyang didn’t sound surprised. “I get it, none of them are trustworthy, I’d know for sure,” he says. You looked at the logbook on one of the desks on the other side of the room and walked up to it, reading the names of all the people listed in it and the reports next to them.

“Who’s Guanheng?” You couldn’t help but ask while you continued flipping through the pages.

“Oh, he’s cool, we usually call him Hendery though, he prefers that name more,” Yangyang answered. You looked at the report. Hypothermia and Drowning were the reoccurring words. What a terrible thing, especially for it to happen so often. Sicheng was another name that came up often, it looked like he tended to have sprained ankles above other injuries, and you subconsciously rolled your own ankle a few times, it must feel horrible to constantly have your ankles sprained, you didn’t even want to imagine the pain. But soon you caught on to the multitude of times where Yangyang’s name appeared, and after nearly all of them were another name you didn’t recognize.

“Who’s Dejun?” You ran your finger down the page. You heard Yangyang stop shuffling around the cabinet, followed by something falling with a small _clatter_ , but you elected to ignore it. You felt this strange warmth envelop your chest, it had to be your heart finally settling down from all that running, you supposed, but it was a very welcome feeling.

“Someone who doesn’t give a damn about you,” he whispered it, probably intending for you not to hear it, but before you could make any inquiry, he spoke in a louder voice. “Just another inmate. We tend to not see eye to eye.”

“Is that so? That explains all the fights.”

“What can I say? He’s a punchable person,” you heard him laugh again.

“That’s a bit cruel,” you muttered.

“He deserves it.” Yangyang’s voice was coarse. You continued flipping until you spotted Dejun’s name again, this time with a surname, likely because it was the first time he was documented on the logbook.

“Xiao Dejun…” you recited. Then your mind flashed back to the boiler room. Xiaojun. Xiao Dejun. You repeated the two names in your head over and over again. Then you recalled the conversation you had with Yangyang just a few minutes prior. They had to be the same person, and you couldn’t think of anyone else it could be. You knew there were only six inmates here, and you’ve met all but two, two who you knew went by the names Guanheng and Sicheng. Did he really not care about you? He saved your life, then again, he only did that because your father saved his. “I know that name… but from where? Hm…” You wondered aloud. You continued to flip through the pages, trying to make sense of everything, when you felt Yangyang wrap one arm around you and hold a cloth to your face with the other. Your hands moved up to grip his arm, trying your best to pull it away from you, but he held you in an iron lock. You wanted to ask why he was doing this, really you did. You raised your leg up, ready to bring it down on his foot, but he noticed this and pulled you up off of the ground, and your kicking legs did nothing to save you. The sweet scent from the rag wasn’t easy to ignore, nor was it one you recognized, but it made an already tired mind worse. Your own grip on his arm started to weaken, and it was something you tried to fight, but all of your attempts were futile. Soon you felt him relax, but you didn’t have the energy to run, instead you did the one thing you could do. You knocked out.

~

You were sobbing, that much was obvious, and it wasn’t a pretty sight either. But you couldn’t stop, you couldn’t hold your tears back, it just made them come out stronger. Any and all tears cascaded down your face and drenched your shirt and lap, it was disgusting. But you just couldn’t _stop_.

You looked around yourself again, it was the same room you’ve seen before. Dull, boring, and unfinished. But this time there were a few more colors than the last time you were here. It seemed more _alive_ , so to say. Again, the TV was on, the same program as the one you’ve seen before, but this time it was muted and grainy, the quality was horrible, moving at only a few frames per second. Is that Ten? It looks like he’s trying to say something to you, but no matter how high you put the volume, no sound came out. But he did look furious. Was furious the right word to say? He looked more worried actually, _afraid_ even. He was knocking on the glass of the television screen, imploring for you to listen to him. He held a sign up to the screen, but when you tried to read it, the sign would be engulfed in static.

Not to mention the loud city noises from outside, they seemed amplified this time, maybe it was because you were upset, or maybe it was because you were searching for something to distract you from your thoughts. You didn’t mind either. But you couldn’t look away from the way Ten was yelling at you from behind the TV Screen, he was very obviously telling you something. He pointed to his hand and started showing you a sequence of numbers from them. Three, two, five, three, five, one, four. Then he’d close his fist and repeat the sequence.

“He really ruined my life,” you cried. Your body was working on its own, your every movement was autonomous from you. “He fucking used me and played with me only for me to go home every day and get yelled at for every little thing I do.”

“I know, I know,” you heard him say next to you. You felt him rub your back gently. “It’s okay to cry, you must’ve been wanting to do it for so long now, didn’t you?”

“How could I have been so stupid?” Again your mouth formed his name, and again there was no sound. “Or even blind for that matter? He never loved me, did he? I was just his damn lapdog this entire time.” You grabbed one of the pillows next to you and buried your face into it.

“(Y/N), I hate to be that person but…”

“I know, you told me so many times that he was just using me, and now here I am,” you picked up the glass of water in front of you and drank it in small sips, hiccuping in between them. It was almost comical how hard you were crying, unrealistic actually. “I can’t imagine what you’re going through, though. You have a mess for a best friend.”

“Yeah, you’re a mess. But you’re also my mess, so there’s no way I can just drop you, (Y/N),” his tone was light, trying to alleviate the heavy mood around the two of you. “It just sucks that someone as wonderful as you ended up with a piece of shit like him.”

“He really was a shitty boyfriend, huh?” A sad laugh escaped your lips. “Thank you, so much, I don’t know what I’d do without you, really.”

“Shoot, I don’t even want to imagine it,” he says. You hear him stand up and walk to the door, it unlocked and opened.

“Where are you going?”

“To grab your things from his place. I’ll have a little talk with him too, you won’t have to worry about him anymore.”

“Really? Are you sure?”

“Just trust me.”

“Alright, be careful.”

“Of course.” You watched the door close, and you ignored the loud _click_ that followed after it. You stared at the screen again. Ten was still repeating the sequence, and you tried to commit it to memory, really you did, but the more you looked at the screen, the harder it became to remember. The sequence had to mean something, but what? What was he even trying to tell you in the first place?

~

When you woke up again you were restrained to the bed with multiple bedsheets tied together. You tugged on them, but they were tied securely to the sides, so although your arms were definitely freer to move around, your ankles were tighter, with a significantly shorter length of bedding. You were still in the med bay, at least. It was a sight you were a bit familiar with, even though it wasn’t a room you were particularly comfortable in. It’s better than waking up somewhere completely unknown to you.

Fuck.

You’d think that you would’ve learned your lesson by now, not to trust anyone in this damn Sector, but here you are. Tied to a bed. You could reach the two knots that linked your wrists to the bed, but with only one hand and a navy-grade knot, untying them would just be a waste of your energy and time.

“Oh, good morning, or at least I think it’s morning,” Yangyang opened the door to the med bay and walked in with a tray in his hands. You sunk into the bed, Yangyang was definitely the last person you wanted to see right now. “You know, you _really_ slept. The Sector even reset a couple of times already.”

“What?”

“Poor thing, you really are tired, aren’t you?” He pulls a chair up next to your bed. “Hungry?” You looked the few slices of bread with jam spread on each of them.

“Not really.”

“What? Come on, it has to have been at least,” he pauses and counts his fingers. "Three days now?”

  
“Three days?” You gasped. There’s no way you were asleep for that long.

“Approximately, time’s wack here. But considering that I’ve run into Kun’s cell in three different locations, I’d assume it’s been three days.”

Three days, you had a hard time wrapping your head around it. But could you really trust him? No, no you couldn’t. You didn’t believe him at all, but you didn’t voice your opinion. But the bread did look tempting, you really were starving to death, but your fears held you back.

“You should eat,” he coaxes you again. “It really isn’t good for you.”

“I’m really not—”

“Eat.”

“Okay, okay,” you folded quickly. It was clear that Yangyang is another one of the inmates that you really didn’t want to make angry. You took a piece of bread, the restraints were long enough for you to maneuver your hands enough to do that. He was looking at you with an excited anticipation, making it clear to you that he was going to wait for you to eat it. You had originally planned to just toss it when he wasn’t looking, but it didn’t look like he was leaving any time soon. Against your screaming conscience, you took a small bite of the bread. The sweetness of the jam was enough to combat the staleness of the bread, and the flavor spread in your mouth and stayed there. You took another bite, and another, and another, were you always this hungry? You didn’t even care if it was laced with something at this point, you just continued to eat the slices of bread.

“See? Was that so hard?” He leans back. You look down at your hands. Here it comes again, if running around made up 75% of your time here, the other 25% would be your mental breakdowns. You couldn’t believe it, you’re stuck here, and now you have this psycho next to you, and you were just so desperate that you didn’t even question his intentions. “Aww, you don’t have to cry, it was nothing, really, aww, poor (Y/N),” he leans over and wipes your tears away.

“Poor... poor... (Y/N)... no one to trust, and all alone,” his voice was songlike while he combed his fingers through your hair, it served to calm you down but all it did was heighten your anxiety to a new level. “It’s okay, you have me.” You cried even harder, it wasn’t to the degree of the dream you just had, but it still fucking sucked. He grabbed a fistful of your hair and tugged it back.

“Shut up.”

You held your mouth shut, you didn’t dare let another whimper out, god only knew what he would do to you, and he let go of your hair resting his hand next to you. Your mind spiraled, you were alone, and you were afraid. You didn’t know who you were more afraid of, Kun, Xuxi, or Yangyang. You hated this. You hated everything. You wanted to get out of here and you’d do whatever it took to get out. Then you noticed the knife on the tray, it was smeared with jam, but it should be sufficient.   


Yangyang sets the tray aside, and glares at the door. “We have some unwanted company.” He stood up and left, slamming the door shut behind him, and you got back to work. You took the knife on the tray and began to work at your bindings, but this attempt proved harder than you originally thought. A butterknife could only do so much to bundled sheets, after all. You heard a loud _clank_ from outside, paired with the sound of rushing steam, and you knew that couldn’t have been good at all. Whatever was going on out there, you knew it was bad news. You continued to cut at the sheets, your movements becoming more and more desperate while you hear the shouts outside. You recognized the other voice easily, it was Xiaojun’s.

 _“You’re fucking insane!”_ That was Xiaojun for sure. _“You’re a piece of shit, Liu!”_

 _“No Ten to hold me back this time,”_ you heard Yangyang’s voice.

_“Sicheng’s on his way to get Kun right now. You’ll be dead by the time he gets here!”_

Words can’t describe the fear you felt at this very moment. Either way, you’re fucked. Either Yangyang comes in or even Kun and you didn’t want to imagine what the outcome of either will be. No doubt as soon as you exit that door you’ll find a whole bloody mess outside with one victor, and you didn’t even have to talk about the shouts outside to know that they were really fighting it out. And when you saw the door open you were already resigning yourself to your fate, but who you saw was someone you didn’t recognize at all. It was a new face, but a calm one.

“Shit, Xiaojun’s going to die any minute now,” he glances behind him, then looks back at you. He walks up to you and takes the butterknife from your hands, then he undoes the knots at the sides of the bed with ease. Once you were free, he takes a step back and waves at you with a tight-lipped expression. “Hi. I’m Hendery.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 4.4K
> 
> Notes: Sorry this took a while, you guys! I just had a little incident where I fell asleep on my laptop and had to deletes a ton of ‘jhwjehwjehjdhsj’ from the page and I ended up deleting a good majority of the doc on accident and AHHHHH I lost my outline for like a day oh lord it was a mess but ITS OKAY its here now haha, I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Implied Violence between inmates, Implications of a Toxic Relationship

“Whoa,” you clutched onto the metal railings at the side of the wall and walked with shaky legs up the staircase. Where the hell were you now? The steps stopped at a door, grandiose in nature, but somewhat underwhelming. You placed your hand on the golden handles and walked inside, taking in the villa-styled room that you had just now found yourself in. The walls were high, and the floors gilded, it was a sight to behold, and you walked through it like it was nothing.

“Hey!” Someone called to you from the balcony. “Where’ve you been? I’ve been waiting for you to show up, (Y/N), come take a look!”

“Oh, alright,” you walked out into the balcony of the room, surrounding you was pitch black. Nothingness. You didn’t know what you were supposed to see.

“Wonderful, isn’t it? Absolutely nothing,” you heard the short _clank_ of chains hitting the balcony railing, you assumed that he was leaning up against it. “But at the same time, it’s something.”

“Huh?”

“Infinite possibilities, nothing!” He sounded gleeful. A pair of binoculars appeared before you. “But when you look closer, then you will see something.” You took the golden binoculars into your hands and held them to your eyes.

Through the binoculars you found a small home, one with natural furniture all arranged in a singular room. You couldn’t see their faces, but inside this home was a happy couple slow dancing to some tune. The chimney was on, as was apparent from the small clouds of smoke coming from the chimney, and there was a faint sound of laughter. You turned to your left and are presented with a new sight. A home with a white picket fence and a golden retriever anxiously awaiting the arrivals of his owners and, lo and behold, two figures with their backs turned to you walk towards the front door and the dog howls with joy, they looked sweet together, with his arm wrapped around her waist.

“It’s beautiful, right?” The voice says again. You place down your binoculars. “The infinite possibilities of absolutely nothing. It’s deceiving, isn’t it?”

“Yeah…”

“Come over here, look on this side.” You walked over to the other side of the balcony and held the binoculars up again.

This time you saw the top of a penthouse tower, a couple stood on their own balcony, too far to be recognized, one looked like a man who had been surrounded by riches since birth, and the other looked like a woman who’s known financial hardships longer than she knew herself. But, despite their backgrounds, they looked content with each other’s presence, overjoyed maybe, but he didn’t look the kind to make that distinction obvious. You turned slightly and you saw a much more rundown apartment, a stark difference from the one you just saw, and again there were two people inside of it, it was rather homey, actually. One looked like a man who has been pining for all his life, and one looked like a woman who was completely and utterly blind to her true love in front of her.

“What am I looking at?”

“What has been,” the voice answers. 

“Hmm.”

“But when you look forward,” you feel him push you gently so that you faced forward now. “You can see what could be.”

It was you, you were standing on a grass field, a sight you weren’t accustomed to which is bound to happen when you’ve lived most of your life on the moon, but more importantly, you looked like you were calling someone over. A small figure runs up to you, a child by the looks of them, but you couldn’t make out any distinctive features other than that. But you saw the way you looked at them, with so much love and admiration, and when the child turned to call another, the lenses on the binoculars shattered.

“But sometimes what could be isn’t meant to be,” the voice sounded melancholy now. “So we dwell in the past for as long as we can, with fear for taking the step forward.”

“The past…” You looked into the bleak nothingness.

“I’d say I miss you, but would you ever miss me? You didn’t like me all that much, did you? You just went with it to make everyone happy.”

“That can’t be true,” you shake your head.

“You have a point, you’ve always been so naive, (Y/N), so sweet. You know, I love you so much for that, someone could have crossed you in the worst way possible and you’d still forgive them,” you heard him click his tongue. “But that’s how people take advantage of you, (Y/N). You’re so desperate to be loved that you find yourself trapped. Don’t worry though, you can trust me, I’ll only do what you tell me to do, even if you want me to forget, then I will do so.”

“You don’t have to go that far.”

“But, darling, I already have.”

~

“Hello,” you waved your hand just as awkwardly as he did. “I’m (Y/N).”

“Oh really? Huh, didn’t think we’d ever get a new neighbor since Kris.”

“Oh, no, I’m not an inmate.”

“Then why are you in here?”

“I’ve been having dreams…”

“Dreams,” Hendery looked at you with a very disappointed expression. “You came into a prison… because you had dreams about it…”

“It does sound dumb now that I say it aloud.”

“Yeah, no offense, but yeah. So like… I see you met Yangyang.”

“Mmhmm.”

“He’s usually not like this, this just means he likes you.”

“Is that a good or a bad thing?”

“A bit of both,” you both watched the doorknob shake violently. “Oh shit, I guess Xiaojun’s, like, dead or something.”

“What?!” Your jaw drops on the floor.

“Sucks, I liked him a lot,” he kneels down and links his fingers together. “C’mon, I’ll boost you up.”

“What are you doing?”

“Helping you get onto the top of the closet.”

“But why?”

“Yangyang’s too tunnel-visioned to notice that you’re hiding up there.”

“Oh my god, I’m going to die in here.”

“Yeah, pretty much, but at least you’ll die a _little_ later if I help you out now.”

“Okay, okay, fine,” you step onto his hand and he pushes you up. You pulled yourself to the top of the closet and sat there, your head just barely reaching the ceiling. The door slams open and Hendery puts his hands in his pockets.

“Hendery.”

“Yangyang.”

“Where is she?”

“Where is who?”

“(Y/N).”

“I have no clue who that is.”

“The girl I tied to the bed!”

“That’s kind of fucked up dude.”

“No it’s not.”

“What if I tied you to the bed?”

“I wouldn’t mind,” he was obviously lying, but it was clear that he wanted to clear his actions somehow.

“You wouldn’t?”

“No.”

“So if I took this rope, which by the way I _know_ is the same rope from the janitor’s closet that I asked you to get me because I wanted to tie Ten’s stupid chair on the ceiling because I thought it would be funny to see his little arms try to get it the other day, you fucking liar, and tied you to this bed, you wouldn’t be opposed to it?”

“… No.”

“You hesitated.”

“No I didn’t! Just fucking tie me up already!”

“Okay, okay, dude, chill. Get over here,” Hendery nudged his head to the bed. Yangyang scoffed, but walked over anyways.

You, on the other hand, watched with such shock that it was _that_ easy to get him to stop, and all it took was a few words. Would you even call this reverse psychology? Wait, yeah, that is what this is, right? Either way, Hendery finished up the knot on the bed.

“Enjoying it?”

“Not really.”

“Yeah, poor girl, no wonder she’s afraid of you.”

“She’s afraid of me?”

“Yeah, looks like it.”

“What.”

“Just look at her, hid up on top of the closet and everything.” You froze. And Yangyang looked up at you, and started tugging on the ropes. “Now you know how she feels. Sucks, doesn’t it?”

“HENDERY.”

“Anyways, is Xiaojun dead?” Hendery walked over to the door and opened it. “Oh, nah, we’re good. He’s just knocked out. Alright, alright, you can get down now, (Y/N).” You slowly lower yourself back on the ground.

“(Y/N) I—” 

“You don’t have a say in this matter,” Hendery shoved a sheet into Yangyang’s mouth. “Oh shit, this guy’s gonna _kill_ me when he escapes from these. (Y/N), let’s take a walk,” he steps out of the door.

“I don’t know if I should.”

“I mean it’s either come with me or run into a different inmate, your call.” You glanced back at Yangyang, and you remembered Xiaojun saying that Kun was on his way.

“Fine,” you followed him out. Hendery closed the door behind the two of you. “Can we at least take him back to his room?”

“The Boiler Room?”

“I would feel bad if we just left him,” you frowned. Hendery looked down both ends of the hallway.

“I guess,” he walked over to Xiaojun and slung his arm over his shoulder. “I’ll just drag him like this, it’s easier.” He starts walking to the left of the hallway and you follow him.

“If you don’t mind me asking… how did you get into Sector V?” He asks.

“Oh, I stole Ten’s key card.”

“So you’re like stuck in here now.”

“Yeah, basically.”

“Sucks.”

“Mmhmm,” you nodded your head awkwardly. You snuck a glance at him again, his hair was slightly damp, and he looked almost too indifferent to be a prisoner. Xiaojun and Xuxi, for example, both held this general impression of being pissed all the time, and Kun just looked like he was done with everything. But Hendery, if you saw him walking out and about in the Station, for example, you wouldn’t have suspected he did anything wrong. “So why are you in here?”

“I really don’t remember, to be honest,” he shrugs.

“I’m sorry, it’s just that you seem so calm compared to the others, are you just used to being here?”

“Oh, no, no. I fucking hate it here,” he laughs. “But what can I do? I’m stuck here for good. And now I’m _for sure_ stuck in here forever since you took Ten’s key. Now we can’t even get out even if we planned to, oh well, I guess,” he adjusts Xiaojun over his shoulder.

“I see…” you looked at Xiaojun now, he looked so peaceful knocked out, nothing like the passive-aggressive inmate you had met earlier, nothing like the remorseful man you last saw him as, just peaceful. Maybe you could ask him about what he meant once he woke up. 

“Hey, so I guess you’ve met everyone, huh?”

“Oh, I haven’t met Sicheng yet…”

“Sicheng? Good luck finding him, he probably went back to his cell by now.”

“Willingly?”

“Yeah, the dude’s a downer. But whatever makes him happy, I guess, I just wish he came out more, maybe talking to one of us will help him out, I don’t know” Hendery stops at the boiler room. “Wait here, okay?”

“Alright,” you watched him descend the steps. Again, you were alone, left to the sounds of Sector V and the now flickering lights. But this time, in the distance, your ears picked up on it.

Screeching iron.

You looked towards the noise, wondering if you should follow it, and repeating Xiaojun’s words in your head. He’s the only inmate you haven’t met yet, and the chances of him being with Kun were high. You looked down the other hall, back at where you and Hendery left Yangyang, if you could redirect Kun to him you wouldn’t have a problem in the future, right? You decided to walk towards the noise, you were going to die anyway, might as well satisfy what little curiosity you had. You continued further down the hallway, the sound of the metal becoming louder and more dissatisfying with every step, and you finally stopped when you came face to face with the source. He was a few feet away from you, and it took him a while to notice that you were finally there. He stopped and looked at you.

You were half expecting for him to react the same way Kun did, with indifference, and the other half you expected him to react like Xuxi did, with surprise. But he did neither. Instead, he took a step back, and tripped over his chains, falling on the ground with a loud thud.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” You run up to him and he holds his hands in front of him, signaling for you to stop and so you did.

“Don’t come any closer!” He shut his eyes tight and looked away. Keeping his eyes closed, he stood up. “I’m sorry, I already said it, (Y/N), why do you have to haunt me like this?”

“I’m sorry? What are you talking about?” You took a cautious step forward, and again he took a step back.

“Don’t, don’t look at me like that, please,” he shook his head.

“Are you…” You looked at his shackled ankles. “Sicheng?”

Then he broke out into a full-on sprint, running as far away from you as possible, with his shackled ankles moving as if they were free from their binds, and soon you didn’t hear him anymore. You blinked a few times.

That was… strange.

He looked more afraid of you than you did towards anyone. And of course, there was the last thing he said, you had no clue about what that was about either. Did you know him from somewhere? Was he from the moon colony at all?

“Hey! Don’t run off like that, damn, I thought Yangyang escaped and took you again,” Hendery huffs. He was out of breath, and you felt bad for making him worry so much about you. “Why are you here anyway? Did I really take that long?”

“Oh, no, I just… I heard Sicheng, and I figured that I should meet him,” you mumbled. Hendery looked up at you with a shocked expression.

“You willingly walked up to Sicheng?”

“Yes?”

“Huh, whenever I think you’re brave you say something that makes me realize that you’re just stupid.”

“Hey!”

“Come on, let’s get you back to the Warden’s Office, there’s got to be something in there that can get you out, I don’t think the Warden is dumb enough to not have a failsafe in case someone does get stuck in here,” he pulls out a map, he had to have received it from the Boiler Room. You took it in your hands, the first thing you noticed was that the ink was somewhat fresh, Xiaojun had to have just made it. And really, Hendery had a point, your father was a smart man, and Ten was just as smart. There had to be something in there. You nodded your head and gestured for him to follow you.

~

“Are you alright, miss?” An unknown woman waved her hand in front of you.

“I’m sorry, I just blanked out for a moment,” you shook your head.

You were sitting in a regal room. You recognized it from the dream you had months ago, the one that had nothing but a void outside of it. To be specific, you were sitting on a white loveseat with golden embroidery and polished mahogany wood, in your hands was a delicate porcelain teacup that matched the room perfectly. And, across from you, was a steaming cup of the same contents, resting on the table.

“Is it not to your liking?” A voice in front of you asks.

“I’m not a fan of ginseng tea, I’m sorry,” you shook your head and looked down at your lap. It was now you noticed that your attire didn’t match the room at all. You were wearing jeans, of all things, and a white shirt that was tattered and frayed at the ends, hell, you weren’t even wearing shoes for this matter. You looked up again, there was a curtain covering the top half his face now, it was being held up by two faceless workers. Now he looked like he belonged in this room. He was wearing a pressed white suit with hints of gold, and next to him was a gold scepter. He held himself like a King, and for all you knew, he probably was one.

  
“Get her some chamomile, please,” he gestures to one of the maids, and she scurries off.

“Thank you,” you bowed your head down.

“No matter, it was silly of me to have forgotten that you weren’t fond of ginseng. Especially when you’ve told me so many times that it was chamomile you preferred, it was a fault on me.”

“Oh, thank you,” the maid rushed back to you with a strange precision and took your original cup, replacing it with the chamomile. You took a sip and let the warmth fill you.

“Do you know why I called you here?” He uncrossed his legs and leaned forward on them, resting his elbows on his knees. The curtain followed him, keeping his features hidden from you.

“No.”

“Figures,” he leans back again and one of the workers hand him his cup. A faint smile ghosts his lips and he sighs. “(Y/N) you don’t remember who I am. And that’s a problem. You can’t even remember what I look like.”

“Just move the curtain…” you mumbled into your cup. His smile drops into a frown, and the cup in your hands became icy.

“Don’t make me angry,” was all he said. His hand moved up to the curtain, but it phased through. “I couldn’t touch this if I wanted to, you know that.”

“I’m sorry,” you placed the cup down. He snaps his fingers and the same maid took the cup and replaced it with a piping hot one. You reached down to get it. 

“Don’t. You’ll burn yourself.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Always so impatient, so naive, I worry about you,” he drinks his tea. “I let you out into the real world and now look at you.” He gestures towards you.

“You look pathetic,” he grimaced. “And all I’ve done for you is what you asked me to do, and you repay me by leaving? And now you expect me to take you back? After everything that you did?”

“I’m sorry,” you felt like you were a broken record.

“Sorry isn’t going to cut it, (Y/N),” his hand moves up to his face and he sighs again. “You’ve really disappointed me. You’re going to have to work hard for me to forgive you, you know that.”

“I know.”

“Actually, you know what?” A wicked smile plays on his features. “Why don’t I just _forget_ about you entirely? See how you like it? I want to see how you will crumble when you realize that I’ve fully forgotten about you. I want you to _feel_ what I went through when you left me, when you _ignored_ me.”

“Wait, please, I didn’t mean to,” your face fell into one of anguish, you had to bite back tears now.

“Oh, my sweet (Y/N), I know you didn’t. But I won’t believe it fully until you tell me yourself, in real life. I want you to come crawling back to me yourself, for real, and only then will I relinquish,” he stood up and walked to the balcony, looking at the stark nothingness that surrounded the two of you. The two workers holding up the curtain scurried away at a flick of his hands. “But oh how I love to see you suffer. I’ll be watching from the sidelines when we finally meet again, my true self will be hiding behind the facade, you’ll never even know that it’s me.”

“Don’t do this to me, please, I need you,” your voice wavered. “I love you…” it was quiet.

“And you know I love you too, but wrongdoings need to be punished, you know that. And when you least expect it,” he turned to you again, but you couldn’t look at him, you were too afraid to. “I’ll come back out and reclaim what’s mine.”

~

You and Hendery stood in front of the Warden’s Office. He opens the door for you.

“And this is where we part ways.”

“Huh?”

“Well, think about it, if there was a failsafe it wouldn’t be available if an inmate was in the room, now would it?”

“That’s true,” you looked around.

“What, miss me already? You’ll be fine, just lock the door behind you. It’s designed so none of us can get in if it’s locked,” he points to a ‘V’ tattoo on his neck. “Tada! This thing has a sensor in it, so we can’t get into certain areas and it tracks where we are. Scary, but oh well.”

“Oh,” you thought back, now that it was pointed out to you, you vaguely remembered seeing it on the other inmates too.

“Bye now, don’t forget to lock the door, please,” he waves at you. You nodded and walked into the Warden’s Office. The door shut in front of Hendery, and immediately his hand went to his head.

“Don’t,” he grit his teeth, and soon another hand went to his head too. He dugs his fingers into his scalp and took in labored breaths, and soon he relaxed. He stared at the doorknob. He took it and tried to turn it, but after a few unsuccessful attempts, he clenched his jaw. “Fuck.”

You ended up throwing one of the hanging jackets over the bloodstain on the floor, it made you uncomfortable to see it. You sat at the desk and began going through drawers. Files, files, more files, even some empty ones at that.

“Come on, come on, there has to be at least a memo somewhere,” you continued to file through the drawers, “bingo,” you pulled out a notebook that looked like it was falling apart, your father’s name was messily scribbled at the top. “The Warden’s Notes?” You opened it and looked at the crooked handwriting, flipping through it mindlessly at first, but the familiar names caught your attention.

“Kun… Xuxi… Dejun… Yangyang… Guanheng…” they stopped there. A few pages after it were ripped out. “Great…” But then you spotted your name on a few of the sentences, the phrase ‘page 86’ circled multiple times in red pen. You flipped to said page, and found something you couldn’t understand. You ran your hand along the various lines that connected your name to various phrases that you didn’t recognize. Your name branched into subcategories, titled TL and a unique unknown symbol to each of those, there were nine subcategories total, each with branching sections with notes written on them, and from there you couldn’t even make sense of the handwriting, they looked rushed, with no rhyme or reason.

“What were you doing, dad? What did you get yourself into?” Your voice wavered again, your dad had always been so secretive of what was happening in the Sector, and he and your mom would always get into arguments about it. You continued to flip through the pages, and with each turn of the page, the notes became more messy, more concerning. One page just had scribbles on it, and one had a repeating sequence of 0s and 1s, titled TL-Σ [TSTL] binary, whatever that meant. And finally, you came to a page that sent shivers down your spine, and caused your breath to catch in your throat.

‘I need to tell (Y/N) now before’ and it stopped there. The rest of the page was stained with blood.

“What happened to you, dad?”

Your dad died a rather unceremonious death. According to your uncle Donghae, he had volunteered to go with him on the expedition unit, for a change of pace from his Warden duties, but while he was out his suit malfunctioned and it leaked out oxygen. According to your uncle, it wasn’t a pretty sight, and you didn’t want to even imagine it. At least, that’s what your uncle told you while he helped you move out of your parent’s unit and into your own, you couldn’t stand being in there anymore. But now you had this sinking feeling that something happened here in Sector V, something happened to your father, but what? You looked up at the door, then back to the bloodied last page, then back up to the door.

Come to think about it, even Ten needed to tell you something about this accursed place, could they have both figured out the same thing? And what did it have to do with you?

Your eye caught something that wasn’t supposed to be there, something glistening at the back of one of the books on the tightly packed shelves. The light from the fixture above you hit it just perfectly, and it sparkled in its dark crevice. You closed the notebook and walked up to it. You picked it up and held the small chain between your fingers. “Dad said he lost this…” you held the locket in your hands. You cracked it open, a familiar tune emitting from it, and you couldn’t help but smile.

“Ten…” the name felt foreign to you, it’s been so long. You closed it and clasped it around your neck. “Nice to have my good luck charm back,” you smiled. Then the phone started ringing. You stared at it, not sure whether you should pick it up or not. You answered it.

“Hello?”

“(Y/N)?! Thank god, I’ve been trying to get to you for _weeks_. Did any of them hurt you? Who have you run into? What have they told you?! Wait, priorities, are you okay? (Y/N), please answer me, you have no idea what kind of problem you’ve wrapped yourself in, (Y/N), why didn’t you listen to me?!”

“Ten?!”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 6.3K
> 
> Notes: You guys I’m gonna be honest IDK about this chapter. I dragged it out pretty long, so I hope it’s not too confusing. Then there was the whole issue with a very glaring mistake on my part, a complete inconsistency with the whole story that I can’t believe slipped past my radar, ahhhhhh. It’s okay, the chapter’s out now and if there are any more glaring problems with this I can fix it in Chapter 7 hahaha. Either way, it’s safe to say, although it may or may not be messy, this is an important chapter. So without further ado, I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Implied Violence between inmates, Implications of a Toxic Relationship

It was quiet.

Which is strange, you know, but that’s it. It was _quiet_. Despite the way your jacket flew in the wind, despite the way the city lights around you rushed past your vision, it was _quiet_.

You clung onto the person in front of you, afraid you’d fall off the back of his motorcycle, and you rested your face against the cool leather. Despite what should’ve been chaotic surroundings, everything was just so calm to you. To put it quite bluntly, it was all very dreamlike.

“You doing alright?” He asks. You nodded your head against him, and you felt him hum. “That’s good… I’m sorry, this is harder than I thought. I thought I was ready to do this, but now I’m not so sure.”

“Why do you say that?”

“You don’t… you don’t hate me, do you?”

“Of course not, why would I?”

“Right, you wouldn’t remember, right, I knew that,” he hums again. You both fall into silence, what did he mean by that? “I didn’t mean to.”

“I know you didn’t.”

“You say that, but I don’t think you know what you’re talking about. Is it really you talking right now, (Y/N)?”

“I’m not so sure,” you had to digress, you didn’t know what you were saying yourself.

“Right, that sounds about right,” you could tell he was nervous. What you didn’t know was whether it was the wind or if he was really shaking. “(Y/N) you deserve a real apology from me. Come find me, because I don’t think I have the strength to find you. Then I will apologize properly, I’ll find it in me to do it, I promise you.” He pulls over at an apartment complex and looks up, he takes his helmet off and holds it in his hands.

“What’s wrong?” You look up at the room he was looking at.

“It’s not too late, (Y/N), you can fix everything. Just forget about me, alright? I caused you so much trouble and I—” You held him tighter, and he became rigid, he was afraid, but what of?

“I chose you for a reason. And I don’t regret it,” you shook your head.

“That’s what you said last time too,” he mumbles. “Forget it. Forget I said anything, don’t come looking for me, you’ll just set yourself up for heartbreak, (Y/N), and I can’t put you through that again.”

“Hey now…”

“Please. Please just go up, he can treat you better than I ever could…” he straps his helmet back on and pushes you off the bike, leaving without letting you say a word. You ascended the stairs and stood in front of the apartment, the same one he was looking at, and leaned against it, listening to the voice inside. It was a worried voice, a bit distressed, and it was calling in a missing person. You recognized that voice, you know you did, but you just couldn’t think about who it was. You turned the knob and the door opened. As you walked in, you were engulfed in a bright light, and that was it.

~

“Ten?! Oh my god, thank god, please tell me you have a way for me to get out of here, please tell me that you do, Ten, I think I’m having another panic attack,” you spoke rapidly into the speaker, your eyesight was blurring, and you felt all your extremities shaking. You were afraid. There was some primal instinct in you that you were in danger. You weren’t safe in this room, but you didn’t know why, and you weren’t eager to find out.

_“I have a way, don’t worry. I just need you to do everything that I tell you to do, okay? Can you do that, (Y/N)?”_

“Yes. Anything to get out of here, I think every inmate has tried to kill me except for Sicheng.”

_“Makes sense. He’s probably the only one you could trust if you could get through to him.”_

“Ten now’s not the time!”

_“I know, I know, this can only work once, so we can’t make mistakes, alright?”_

“Okay.”

_“Breathe, (Y/N). I need you to be calm for this to work.”_

“Okay.” You closed your eyes and took in deep breaths.

_“You good?”_

“Yeah.”

 _“Alright. There’s a… in the office… need you to…”_ Ten’s voice became garbled.

“Huh?” You pressed the phone closer to your ear, hoping that it would make his voice somewhat clearer.

 _“Office… leather couch…”_ Yeah, nope, all that did was make your ear hurt from all the static. Then the line fell dead, and you sit at the desk, listening to the drawn out _beep_.

“Hello?” You spoke into the speaker, but you knew no one was going to answer. “Ten?” You choked back a sob and put the phone down with a soft _click_. The ticking on the clock over the door got louder, and it was all you heard, until someone tried to open the door.

“(Y/N)? It’s Hendery, I forgot to tell you something important,” the voice was muffled, but you could easily tell it was him. But you were curious as to why he tried to open the door, he was the one who told you to lock it, after all. Then you remembered a specific something that you caught a glimpse of in the Warden’s notebook.

And, nope, you’re drawing a blank, nothing you could remember. You closed the notebook and looked at the door, you genuinely had no idea if you should open it or not. But you wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, so you moved to the door, and you placed your hand on the lock, still inwardly debating to yourself if you could trust the person behind it.

The first thing you noticed was that he held himself taller, his shoulders were rolled back, his posture was straighter, and even the air around him was stronger. He was very different to the more laid back Hendery you just met, with his slouched figure and overall friendly and inviting personality. You already knew this one was different.

“Hello…”

“I’ll make this quick then,” next note, his voice was on a much lower register than before. Hendery pushed you inside and locked the door behind him. He moved over and sat behind the desk, and you sat in front of it. “Good to see you again, (Y/N), you’re looking as naive as ever.”

“I’m sorry?”

“Oh, right, you wouldn’t remember,” he rolls his eyes. He kicks his legs up on the desk. He spots the notebook on the table, and you both make a move to grab it, but he yanks it out of your hand and flips to his page, then hands it to you. “Seriously, Hendery drops you off in the one room with all the answers and you didn’t read a single note? Pathetic.”

You look down at the page, page 96, the same one that was highlighted and circled multiple times on Guanheng’s page.

Huang Guanheng - Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

(9/22/19) The host is Guanheng, he only fronts in his cell, I’ve never met him, and I doubt I ever will.

As of the above date, there are nine alters, one persecutor (Kunhang), two protectors (Hendery, Juni), one of which is a caretaker as well (Juni), two child alters (Nana, Ben), one gatekeeper (Matthew), three fragments (Sarang, Jinsoo, Beck).

Kunhang and Hendery front most during free hours.

Note that Hendery, Juni, and Nana will always knock first. Matthew, Ben, and Sarang will speak first, Jinsoo and Beck never come to the office, and Kunhang will always try to open the door first

“Uh…” you read through the notes again, and you’d look up at Hendery.

“Don’t make me spell it out for you.”

“Sorry, thank you for telling me, I’ll make note of this, surely…” you mumbled.

“Wait… that easy? You’re not going to ask me to prove it?” You looked at him with a dead stare.

“I’ve been drugged and tied to a bed. Trapped in a suspended cell room. Stuck on never ending stairs, and so much more. This makes the most sense.” He coughed awkwardly and took the notebook back. “So… you’re Kunhang then.”

“Yeah.”

“Can I talk to Hendery?”

“Nope.”

“Why?”

“Hendery doesn’t know what he’s supposed to be looking for.”

“And you do?”

“Yup,” he continues digging through your father’s notebook. “God, I can barely read any of this shit.”

“It’s not that bad, I can translate for you if you want,” he held a hand up to silence you and you sunk into the chair.

“They really see me like this?” A frown settled on his face while he read through the notes. “These are definitely out of date.”

“You’re not like that?”

“Well first of all, I punched Suh because he was being too aggressive to Guanheng, I’ve never gotten physical with Xuxi, I almost did once actually but it didn’t go too far, also the Warden’s overreacting, ‘almost died,’ don’t make me laugh, all I did was tell him he was wrong, leave it to the Warden to change the narrative,” Kunhang flipped through the notes. “Also I only broke Jeno’s arm because he was going to break mine, alright?! You can see it in the tapes… Unless Jungwoo edited it out… Okay, I’ll admit I’ve tried to ruin things for the others in the past… but after having a _lengthy_ conversation with Juni and Matthew, I’d rather try to shape up than have to go through another talk with both of them,” he mumbles. He takes a red pen from the desk and starts scratching out areas on his section and correcting them.

“That and Ten made our system start seeing Dr. Kim twice a week, a huge jump from the previous Warden’s twice a month with Suh watching in the back so we couldn’t try anything, but I’m trying, that’s what matters…” Kunhang was really speaking more to himself now. He looks at you now. “I’m not dangerous. Not anymore,” he places the notebook on the table.

“They just don’t get it, I’ve gone through so much _shit_ for them, and they still don’t understand and no matter what I do they just _won’t_ understand. And of course, neither Warden would’ve just _asked me_ how I felt, that’s not their job and even if they did they wouldn’t believe me, and not to mention the first Warden would just throw away Dr. Kim’s report…”

“I don’t think you’re dangerous,” you leaned forward on the desk and took the notebook again, going through your father’s notes.

“Don’t read those,” he changes the page to a much later one. “Those are Ten’s, they’re more accurate since he actually cared about us more.”

You’d recognize Ten’s handwriting from anywhere, it was much neater than your father’s, much more legible. The only problem was that his writing style was more poetic, in laymen’s terms, they’re unnecessarily lengthier. But onto the subject of the page, it looked like notes from an interview with Dr. Kim Doyoung, a lot of it was definitions, treatments, schedules, and etc. All having to do with Guanheng and the nine other alters.

“I don’t expect you to memorize all of that now, just be aware,” he takes the notebook from you again and drops it back into its drawer.

“So the way my father’s notes started… is it true? That you started as a persecutor?”

“Yeah.”

“Well then you have a lot of trauma, so I can understand why it’s hard for you. You remember the things that no one else does, don’t you? And it’s hard to know those and not have anyone to bounce it off of other than Dr. Kim, so I can understand why you were so frustrated before, but you say you haven’t done those things for a while, and you say that you’re working on it, so I don’t see what there is to be afraid of.”

“Don’t do that.”

“What?”

“You did this exact same thing to us years before.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you leaned back on the chair now.

“You left us, (Y/N). You left us when we needed you the most and you left after you said something just like that. Don’t you remember?” Kunhang stood up from the desk and walked over to stand next to you. He placed his hand on the desk in front of you and leaned over, he gripped onto the arm of the chair and trapped you entirely. “You really don’t remember who we are?” He was very close to you now, and it was clear that he wasn’t going to let off until you gave him the answer he wanted. 

“I…” Kunhang backed off and put a hand to his head, wincing in pain. “Fuck, are you kidding me? Why now? I’m finally getting answers!” Just as fast as the headache came, it went. And Kunhang stood still in the middle of the room.

“Kunhang? You stood up and walked over to him, placing a cautious hand on his shoulder.

“Huh?” He looked at you with an obvious confusion fixed onto his features, but then realization set on his features, and, maybe you were imagining it, but you saw his eyes start to water. “What did he say to you?”

“I don’t know who he was talking about, I think he was mixing me up for someone you knew in the past, but he said that I left you,” you explained. He shook his head and held his hand out.

“Sorry, I should introduce myself, I’m Guanheng, the host,” you took his hand and shook it slowly. “I wasn’t in co-consciousness like I usually am, and the one time I’m not he pulls this, I’m so sorry. Nana came running into my room to tell me he was scaring you, I’m so sorry, he’s usually not like this anymore I don’t know what brought it back up.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine,” you answered.

“I was in co-consciousness with Hendery though, I’m really sorry you have to go through all of these, really I am, and if I could help you more I could,” Guanheng rubbed the back of his neck and looked off to the side. “Just uh… the rest of us are fine… but I think it would be better for you and for us if we didn’t run into each other anymore, alright? I’ve gone through one too many switches today, and it’s not a good thing…” Guanheng walked himself to the door.

“Wait!” You stopped him before he could close the door. “Tell Hendery I said thanks, yeah?”

“Sure, I’ll let him know,” Guanheng closed the door.

He leaned against the once again locked door, finally letting himself relax. He didn’t even realize it until he was outside, but the way he was crying wasn’t one to be spoken about. Surely if anyone saw him now they’d laugh and tell him to man up, but he couldn’t help it. He pushed off the door and made his way to his cell, the farther away from you he was, the safer it was for the both of you. 

The phone rang shortly after Guanheng left, and you scrambled to answer it as soon as you could.

“Ten?!”

_“Uh… actually it’s Mark.”_

“What?”

_“Hold on, hold on, we had to go through some workarounds to patch Ten into this closed server— Hey! Be pati—“_

_“(Y/N). I need you to tell me everything that has happened since you entered Sector V.”_

“A lot. A lot has happened.”

_“Okay, you know what? Forget about it. (Y/N) I have the codes you need to escape. I tried telling it to you before, but I don’t think you remember them.”_

“What? How?”

_“Okay, yeah, you definitely don’t remember them. Alright write this down, I don’t think I’ll be able to get back into the closed server after this call.”_

“Okay, I’m ready.”

_“First you scan the key card, then it should reveal a keypad. Now you have to put in your unique serial number, ready?”_

“Yeah.”

_“Okay, hold on, Mark’s taking his sweet old time to pull up your serial number.”_

_“I’m stressed out, okay?!”_

_“Alright, now we’re good. SMTD5127821”_

“Wait, say that again?”

_“SMTD5127821. S as in sandcastle, M as in Mark, T as in Ten, D as in Dog, Five, One, Two, Seven, Eight, Two, One. SMTD5127821.”_

“Okay, got it. What’s the second one?”

_“Put this code in after your serial code. Three. Two. Five. Three. Five. One. Four.”_

“Say it one more time.”

_“Three. Two. Five. Three. Five. One. Four.”_

“Okay, I have it written down.”

_“Once you put that code in the scanner will slide back over the keypad. Scan the key one more time and you’ll be able to get out. But if you’re not out within ten minutes you won’t be able to try again for another two weeks, so make it fast.”_

“Okay, I can do that.”

_“Breathe, (Y/N), you’re basically home free now. You just need to get to the door.”_

“Alright, I’ll see you on the other side?”

_“Of course. Be safe, (Y/N), you can do this. I trust you.”_

“Alright, I’m almost home…” You heard Ten hang up first. You clutched onto the piece of paper, you had ripped it out of your father’s notebook since it was the closest thing you had, it was essentially scrap paper save for eight words written on it anyways. You folded it up and shoved it into your pocket.

You stepped outside of the Warden’s Office, there was no point for you being in there anymore. You remembered your father mentioning that the telephone in the Sector was one way, receiving only, for reasons that included limiting any and every outside contact for the inmates. Helpful, isn’t it? And you didn’t want to be a sitting duck in that office, anyone could have gotten to you if you stayed. You looked down both halls, has it always been this quiet? Or have you just gotten used to being here? You had no clue, and you were afraid to find out. But what’s important now is that you have to get out of here.

“(Y/N)!”

“Oh no,” you didn’t even look back, you knew damn well who it was and you had no idea how he got out of the med bay, but you booked it.

“Wait for me!” Yangyang’s voice was getting more distant, but you couldn’t help but think it was a trap. He would know the layout of Sector V better than you did, chances are he was planning to cut you off, and like hell you’d want to do that. You ran into the first place you saw, which luckily for you, was the Boiler Room.

“What are you doing here?” Xiaojun was sitting on the metal desk.

“Gotcha,” Yangyang stood at the exit of the boiler room.

“Oh great, you brought the psychopath with you,” Xiaojun stands up and grabs a wrench from the drawer. “Time I pay you back for bashing a metal sheet over my head, Liu.”

“Back off, Xiaojun, I just wanna talk to her.”

“You _tied_ her to a bed.”

“Is that not normal?!”

“No!” Yangyang grabbed onto one of the steel pipes and ripped it off. “Oh fuck that’s not good,” Xiaojun reached next to him and turned down the steam.

“Why did I choose to hide in here?” You scolded yourself. Now you’ve been making a to of dumb choices lately, let’s be real, so you really weren’t surprised when you ran between the two of them with your hands raised. “Let’s both calm down, alright? There aren’t any doctors here right now, it wouldn’t do well if someone got hurt… right?”

“You…” Yangyang looked between you and Xiaojun. “You’re going to try to get her out of here, aren’t you?!”

“That’s bull shit you know we wouldn’t be able to get out even if we wanted to.”

“So why are you holding the key card then?” You turned around to face Xiaojun. He sighed and clenched his jaw, then he reached into his pocket and pulled the key card out. Your hand immediately moved to your pocket and, sure enough, it was gone.

“When did you…”

“When you and Hendery brought me back to the Boiler Room,” Xiaojun admits.

“Xiaojun,” you spoke with a warning tone.

“No… you’re not going to get her out… you’re going to keep her in here, aren’t you?” Yangyang gasps. “Holy shit, Xiaojun, you’re evil.”

“Like I said, we wouldn’t be able to escape even if we wanted to.”

“No, no, you figured it out, and now you don’t want her to leave because there is a way to get out,” Yangyang insists. “Spill, Xiaojun. You have the card, why else would you need it? It’s not like we can leave with these damn chips in us,” Yangyang tapped the pipe against the metal floors.

“I didn’t find anything out. I’ve known the codes, but they’re specific to Ten only. Speaking of him, he’s the only one who has the authority to find out what anyone’s specific codes are, and since he’s not here, we’re stuck, so even if I wanted to escape I can’t. And I couldn’t help her either,” he nodded towards you.

“So give her back the card.”

  
“What’s the point? None of us can escape!”

“I don’t see the point of keeping it away from her then! You just don’t want her to leave when Ten finally does figure out a way to get her out!” You couldn’t tell if Yangyang was just playing devil’s advocate or if he really wanted you to get out. For all you knew he could just be riling Xiaojun up just for the heck of it, but you had to agree that Yangyang had a point, you had to regrettably admit it but it was true. Why would Xiaojun need the card, and how could you escape? But more importantly, why was he keeping it from you? You reach for the card but he moves it away from you. 

“Xiaojun, don’t lie to me,” you kept your hand over your pocket, keeping the codes safe.

“I guess there’s no point in trying to anyways… I overheard your conversation with Ten in the Warden’s Office. And maybe… just maybe… I made a deal with Kun.”

“No…”

“Look, (Y/N), you don’t have the full story, but I can’t let you leave. We need you to stay in here.”

“Why are you doing this?! You were helping me out in the first place… What changed?!” You had to ask.

“I fulfilled my debt that first time I saved you, and now we’re even.” He spoke with a darker undertone. Yangyang pushed you behind him and he charged, pinning Xiaojun to the floor with a pipe against his neck, the red key card flying out of Xiaojun’s hand and teetering dangerously off the edge of the walkway, just a few feet above the burning metal beneath.

“You’re just as messed up as all of us!” Yangyang pushed down on Xiaojun’s neck, and the other gripped both sides of the pipe and resisted as best he could.

You weighed out your options. The red card or Xiaojun? The answer was obvious. You sped past the two of them and reached for the card, everything seemed to move in slow motion. You stepping over Xiaojun, you bending down to grab the card, the card falling from the metal railing, and the feeling of the delicate plastic just grazing your fingertips before it plummeted to the fire down below.

Amazing how in just a few seconds all of your hopes and dreams could’ve gone crashing down in that instance. It was, quite literally, set ablaze in the flames. The whole world fell silent. You heard the muted stomps of another person enter the boiler room, someone who you easily recognized as Kun, but he any and every word he said wasn’t processing in your brain. No. All you could think about was that there was a way to escape this _whole_ time, and now it was gone. And now there was no way to call Ten back, to figure out another way out. No doubt he’s sitting outside of the Sector now expecting to see you, but no. Whatever sliver of hope you had was gone.

And there were no hopes of it coming back.

~

Now isn’t this a sight for sore eyes?

The rushing lights of the city, the reverberating hum of the motorcycle, and the steady breaths of the man in front of you. You haven’t had this dream in months, and it was a welcome one. Strangely enough, you only had it when you were feeling exceptionally stressed. He picked up the speed, and wherever it was you were heading off to was in close sights. You looked over his shoulder, not daring to unwrap your arms from him, you wouldn’t want to fall off, after all. You were headed for a break in the main street, it led to a winding road up a much less vibrant hill that was just high enough to overlook the city’s skyline. The only thing that would’ve caught your eye was the shining full moon just behind it, and the glimmering stars that dotted the skies like a canvas.

“Hi,” you broke the ice first.

“Hello.”

“How are you?”

“Isn’t that my line?”

“Looks like I beat you to it,” you tried to lighten up the tense mood.

“Like you usually do,” you heard a hint of joy in his voice. “Makes me wonder why you called me ‘Winwin’ all the time, I usually tend to lose when it comes to you.”

“Aww, that can’t be true,” you sighed and relaxed against his back, everything felt much more comfortable now.

“I don’t know about that… I lost you.”

Right before you could exit the city, he stopped and pulled over.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I can’t do this,” his voice was muffled by his helmet. “I thought I could, I thought it was finally time, but I _can’t_ do this.”

“No, no, it’s okay.”

“Please get off.”

“What?”

“I said _get off_ ,” he pushed you off and you stumbled onto the ground. You looked up at him, and, for the very first time, you saw his face. He was angry, he was afraid, and he was remorseful. It was such a strange hodgepodge of emotions that just _worked_ together, you understood him, you saw what he was going through. But, worst of all, you recognized him. It was at this moment, while you two made eye contact, where he removed his helmet, and he stared at you. That’s it. But how his eyes alone told a story of a thousand words, but none of which either of you could speak. Instead, with all the faceless people just walking around the two, you stood in a comfortable silence. “I’m sorry…” he whispered it, but it echoed in your ears. Then he put the helmet back on and drove off, towards the hill you were headed towards in the first place.

You pushed yourself up off of the ground and you followed him. You shoved your way against the foot traffic, you couldn’t lose him now. You needed answers, and this is the first time you were able to clearly see who he was. You needed to know, what were these dreams? Why were you having them? You were desperate, it was obvious. But when you finally got to the foot of the hill, the incline seemed to get steeper every second you looked at it.

You turned away only when you heard a car honk next to you, then it unlocked, waiting for you to get inside.

Fuck it.

You pulled open the door and slid into the passenger seat.

“Holy shit… it worked…” The driver next to you gasped. You turned to him.

“Ten?!”

“You have _no idea_ what I had to go through to do this,” he spoke in a low voice. He turned the car around.

“Wait, we have to—”

“No.”

“Ten!”

“(Y/N) why haven’t you gotten out of the Sector yet?”

“I…”

“(Y/N) I need you to listen to me,” he turns to you. “You’re not going to understand it at first, and I don’t expect you to, because hell even I don’t know why this happens. (Y/N) I am speaking to you in real time, this is actually us communicating. Whatever you say to me now I will remember when we both wake up. I have no way to prove it to you because of the closed server in Sector V, but I’m just going to need you to trust me.”

“What…?”

“Forget it. Why haven’t you left yet?”

“It’s kind of an interesting story…”

“Don’t beat around the bush.”

“I may or may not have… lost the card…” you mumbled the last part.

“What was that?”

“Don’t get mad.”

“Say it.”

“I lost the card.” Ten slammed on the breaks. The cars around the two of you opting to just drive around instead of blaring their horns. He rested one arm over the steering wheel and the other on the armrest, and took a deep breath. He continued facing forward, and his tone was icy.

“What do you mean you ‘lost the card’?”

“It fell in the boiler room.”

“Why.”

“Xiaojun stole it for some reason, he said he overheard our conversation, and Yangyang was saying that he wanted to keep me in the Sector, something about a deal with Kun, and it’s all just so confusing and I can feel my head splitting in half from the pure stress this has put me through and I—” Ten held his hand up and shook his head.

“I’ve heard enough.”

“Ten, I’m so sorry…”

“I only have one more option, (Y/N), and I don’t even think it’s going to work. If I fuck up anywhere we’ll both probably die on the spot.”

“Okay, let’s not do that.”

“The chances are one in a million,” he turned to you. “Do you want to get out of the Sector?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll see you in a few hours.”

~

When did you pass out? You didn’t remember anything past watching the key card fall with all of your hopes. But, more importantly, where were you now? You looked around the room you were seated in… seated, right, you were sitting on a chair, and all around you were chains stretching to eternity almost, but none of which were connected to you. It was dark, with only a single light above you that shone on a table with a glass and pill on it.

Where were you?  


“Um… hello,” someone spoke near the door.

“Hendery?!”

“Oh… no… Kunhang told me you didn’t remember us… I’m Nana,” he spoke in a higher tone. “I, uh, I saw Yangyang dragging you down the hall, and I didn’t think you’d like it… So I knocked him out… and hid you here, no one would ever go here… they know better…”

“Oh, um…” you thought back to the notebook, Nana was one of the child alters if you recalled correctly.

“Okay, bye now!” Nana pushed open the cell door and rushed out before you could say another word. You scrunched your eyebrows and leaned back on the chair, the sound of the chains hitting each other accompanied by it. Then you stood up and walked around the narrow room. Then the door opened again.

“How did you get in here,” Sicheng shut the door and pressed himself up against it.

 _“He’s probably the only one you could trust if you get through to him…”_ Ten’s words repeated themselves in your mind. He might not be able to get you out, but if it’s someone you could trust you’d run the entire moon station billions of times for it.

“Nana brought me in here.”

“Oh… that explains Yangyang lying face down in the middle of the Sector…” he spoke with a small voice. “You should leave.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”

“It’s fine, Nana usually leaves things in my cell anyway, so this isn’t that much different,” he continued to move against the wall, keeping as far away from you as possible. You took a step towards the door, but ended up getting your foot caught in one of the chains and falling over. Why you didn’t even attempt to stop yourself you’ll never know, but it spoke volumes for how _done_ you were with everything. “Are you okay?” Sicheng held onto your shoulders and helped you up. You both stopped as soon as your eyes met, and it was that same feeling you had in your dream. The feeling of safety, comfort, and familiarity. It was something you craved, and something you recognized right in front of you.

Your dream… it all came rushing back to you now, every word, every sensation, every feeling. It came back to you like it was all brand new, and he must’ve noticed it too, because the longer you looked into his eyes the more you could tell that he was thinking, debating, and planning. He was weighing the pros and cons the same way you were. But, from what you could remember, he wouldn’t ever take the initiative, and you would need to step up.

“Who are you?” It was a dumb question, you knew that, but how else were you supposed to start?

“Nobody important to you.”

“For some reason, there’s something telling me I shouldn’t believe that,” you pressed. “You were so afraid of me when we first met, and I can tell you are just as afraid now, please, tell me who I am to you,” you maintained your focus. Sicheng could very well have all the answers you need. He fell down onto his knees and his shoulders slouched, he hung his head down low and refused to look at you.

“I am so sorry.”

“You said that the first time too…”

“Please… just leave,” you bent down to look at him fully. He averted his gaze, but his intentions were clear. You moved gradually, just like someone who wanted to tame a beast. You raised your hand gently, and held it close to his face, hesitating slightly before cupping it gently.

“I don’t think you want me to do that.”

“This isn’t fair… you don’t even remember who I am,” his shoulder shook, and he had a weak smile on his face.

“Then remind me.”

“I don’t think you’d want me to do that…” he choked back a sob. “I’m not someone worthy of being remembered, especially by you.”

“What did I do to you? Can I fix it?”

“No, no you can’t,” he held onto your wrist, and you felt him start to move it away, but for now he held it in place. “I’ve killed you before.” He kept his head downtrodden, and you did your best to read the atmosphere. One thing you learned about Sicheng was that he wouldn’t let everything be told easily, you needed to read between the lines, and judging by the way he was on the brink of a full mental breakdown, you had enough plausible theory to know that there was more to that statement.

“How?”

“The hill. We were on our way up and… surprise surprise, he was waiting up there for us.”

“Who?”

“You wouldn’t remember him… and now that I think about it I’m glad you don’t… but he was there… and you, you were so brave to the last moment, I can’t help but envy you,” he says. “But so _reckless_. I wasn’t worth saving, I never was, but you still found it in you to let me continue on, and where did that land me? In a cell for a crime I didn’t even do. Aren’t you disappointed in me? Even if you don’t remember the whole story, now that you know that much, I’m pathetic, aren’t I? You can’t even look at me, I took everything away from you because I was just so selfish, I didn’t think that the consequence of my happiness would be your despair, and for that, I am so sorry, Park (Y/N). I’ve said over and over in my head what I’d say to you if we ever met again, to the point where I’d even say it in my sleep, but now I can’t remember a single word of what I had planned, all I can say is how sorry I am, (Y/N).” You listened to his story to the very end, trying to search your deepest memories to understand what he was talking about, but with no results, you stopped.

“You’re right, I don’t remember, and I’m not sure if I ever will, everyone in this Sector has told me that they knew me, and that I’ve just forgotten about them, but for once I feel like I recognize you,” you said. He pressed his lips together, and his hands balled into fists.

“Get out.” He said it through grit teeth, and you knew that you must’ve struck a nerve in him, but what did you say other than the truth. “Please, I don’t think I can handle this anymore.”

“Don’t shut me out, tell me how I can—”

“You can help by getting _out_. Please, give me some time, I’m not in a good state to talk to you right now, (Y/N).”

“Sicheng…”

“ _Please_.” You stood up and made your way to the front of the cell, and you looked back, he hadn’t moved at all, and he surely wouldn’t follow. You didn’t expect anything more, so you pushed open the cell door, and closed it gently behind you.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 4.7K
> 
> Notes: Finalllllly, I’m so sorry this took so long! Buuuuuut, here she is! And I hope you all enjoy it~ We’ve reached the planned halfway point of Zemblanity! Thank you all for joining me for the ride, and I hope you guys stick with me all the way through! And I hope we have some more friends join us along the way!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Implications of a Toxic Relationship

You rolled around on the bed you were on, trying to find a comfortable position under the covers. The room was dark, the only light coming from the moonlight that filtered in through the small opening between opaque curtains. As for the furniture, you were only able to make out the general shapes of them, the darkness serving as a sufficient veil to keep their colors and details hidden from you. However, you could just tell, there was something deeply unsettling about this room, something that put all your nerves on edge the longer you kept your eyes open. You could be staring at the ceiling and there would be that horrifyingly ominous feeling that would wash over you like it was nothing. There was something wrong about this dream, you already knew it, but it was too early to call it a nightmare.

“Stop moving around,” the voice next to you yawned. And just like that, the feeling of horror was swept away, and instead you were filled with safety and comfort, and just from a voice alone, you were immediately drawn to it, you wanted to hear it again, you longed for the safety it provided, and you wanted to surround yourself in it. You paused and a small pout formed on your face. “Maybe you’d be more comfortable if you didn’t hog the entire blanket, babe,” he tugged it away from you entirely, leaving you cold and only _slightly_ pissed off.

“Give it back!” You reached behind you and tugged it over your form again.

“So we’re playing that game?” You heard him turn to face you and he grabbed the ends of the blanket, pulling it and you closer to him. “Why am I even in love with you?”

“You know I can break up with you at _any_ point, right?”

“But you won’t.”

“And why is that?”

“Because, admit it, you’re madly in love with me,” he teases. You groan and rolled your eyes.

“Ew… it’s gross because it’s true,” you rolled around in his arms and pressed your face to his chest, he pulled the blanket over the both of you and rested his chin on your head, your heartbeats syncing with each other. “I can stay like this forever…”

“I mean, you could,” he says. “There’s nothing stopping you.”

“Yeah, I know…”

“It’s a shame you won’t remember saying that though, babe,” his voice lowers. “You’re not going to remember much about this dream aside from it being another one of your cryptic lover dreams.”

“Huh?”

“I’d rather keep you here, locked in your dream world, for myself and myself alone, but that’s not how it works, isn’t it, (Y/N)?” He hummed above you, lost in a thought. He wraps his arms around you and holds you the same way a wild and starving dog would hold onto a bone when someone tried to take it away from them. “Ah, all mine, and mine alone, isn’t that a better alternative? Don’t you want to be with me forever, (Y/N)? You said it yourself, so I’ll take it as permission…” he rubbed your head softly.

“My little and perfect (Y/N), so perfect for me and me alone… how wonderful.”

~

You heard the cell door lock behind you, and you turned and faced the glass. You ran your hands along the frosted edges of the cell, and you stopped next to the serial numbers: 111. The sigh that left your lips was a quiet one, and all you could do was stare at the numbers. You knew who Sicheng was, you saw his face specifically in your dreams, you know you did, so he had to be someone important to you. But you couldn’t shake the feeling that although you’ve seen Sicheng’s face, the other men you’ve been speaking to were just _too_ different from Sicheng. The man in the castle, for example, is much too different from Sicheng. The man in the white picket fence home was much too rash, the man in the gray room was too calm, no, Sicheng must be someone else to you. 

“I found you~” Yangyang jumped behind you and wrapped his arms around your shoulders, digging his face into your neck. You felt chills run across your body. “Aww, you’re so warm, it’s so cold in here all the time… this is nice,” he hums.

“Hi… Yangyang…” you said slowly. You tapped his hands softly, you were honestly afraid that he’d break your neck if you made him angry, you’d might as well go along with what he wanted you to do.

“I’m bringing you with me! You must be so hungry, and I feel so bad,” he whines. He intertwines his hand with yours and swings it next to him while he leads you down the halls. “I see you were talking to Sicheng, he’s a bit of a stick in the mud, but he’s a great guy once he gets closer to you,” he squeezes your hand softly, waiting for a response.

“Oh, really?”

“You’re… you’re not still scared of me… are you?” He looks at you suspiciously and you smile and shake your head, again, you were afraid that he was going to dislocate your shoulder.

“Of course not!”

“So Hendery was lying,” his voice took a deeper tone. Oh shit, you didn’t want to throw him under the bus, you really liked Hendery, he’s the only other person who hasn’t scared the hell out of you in this Sector.

“Well, at the time, I was scared of you, you tied me up to a bed, and I’m sure you know how that feels now, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I didn’t really like it, so I’ll never do it again, okay?”

“Alright.”

“Can we be friends?”

“Sure.”

“And maybe… something more?”

“Don’t push it.”

“Aww, okay.” He squeezed your hands again and kicked open two swinging double doors. He pulled you in and the first thing you noticed was how much brighter it was in comparison to the rest of the Sector, it took a short while for your eyes to adjust to the bright overhead lights. It was only after that when you saw the separate tables in the room, about four in total and they looked to fit about three people on each bench, not that it mattered, it was just an observation. “Welcome to the mess hall! Let’s prepare you something better than stale bread.”

“So you knew it was stale!”

“Yup, I’m surprised you ate it.”

“You’re so mean.”

“No! No, I didn’t think you’d eat it! I’m sorry!” He had one of those looks that you just couldn’t stay mad at, the puppy dog eyes and the boyish pout, good lord you almost forgot he tied you to a bed and scared the living daylights out of you.

Almost.

You walked up to the kitchen doors and pulled on the handle, noticing that it was locked right away.

“How are we going to get into the kitchens?” You asked him.

“Ba da da daaaa~” Yangyang sang and pulled out a bobby pin.

“Where did you get that?”

“You can get anything from stealing,” he sounded more smug than proud. Yangyang walked over to the door to the kitchens and picked the lock with ease. “And now we can eat anything we want!”

“Do they usually keep the kitchen locked?”

“Yup. I heard it was Kun’s fault actually.”

“Really? Why?”

“Oh, he took the knives over there and killed Jongin.”

“Jongin from accounting?!” Your mind immediately went to the young man who you had the pleasure of speaking to on behalf of your friend Yerim. That felt like decades ago, she was tired of you being single and tried to set you up with her coworker, but the two of you didn’t end up hitting it off. You never heard from him again, but you didn’t think he died.

“Who? No, I mean inmate Jongin.”

“What…?” You stared at him with an open jaw and he pushes your jaw closed.

“Careful, you might eat a fly.”

“Oh, goodness, no.”

“I’m kidding, there’re no flies in here, that would be gross,” Yangyang walks past you and throws open the fridge. “What do you feel like eating?” You look over his shoulder and spot the stacked tupperwares and bottles.

“Uh… are we allowed to eat those?”

“They used to belong to the staff but they’re not going to be coming back any time soon, so it’s first come first serve now! I gotta eat before the others get here and steal everything,” he pulls out a tupperware and opens it. “Salad, this must’ve belonged to Suh. Here, have a sandwich, I think it was Jeong’s,” he tosses you the small container and it fumbled in your hands. You looked at the rather plain ham and cheese sandwich and thought about whether or not you should eat it.

You pushed yourself to sit on top of the metal counter of the prison’s kitchen. You couldn’t help but laugh, actually. You were trapped in here forever, and for good now, and here you were eating one of the guard’s sandwiches with the man who tied you to a bed. It was all rather ridiculous, now that you really thought about it. 

“Hey, what’s so funny?” Yangyang looked at you over his shoulder and you just shook your head.

“We’re going to die in here.”

“Yeah, pretty much, I mean I get why it’s scary for you, but me and the other guys have known that since we got in here,” Yangyang shrugs. “Look, really, I’m sorry for scaring you, I got overexcited, is all, and I tend to get like that,” he sounded sincere, at least, and you had reason not to fully trust his words. But considering that you were going to waste away in here, you’d might as well get acquainted with the other inmates, they would be the only other people you’d ever speak to again, after all, why not start with Yangyang? Who just happened to find you outside of Sicheng’s cell.

“How did you know—”

“Nana’s not very good at making sure I’m knocked out.”

“Oh…”

“She’s sweet, and all, but like… she’s just a kid,” Yangyang takes a bite out of his own sandwich. “Plus, I knew she’d take you to Sicheng’s cell so I figured I’d find you there. She really likes him.”

“Why?”

“Something about him reminding her of someone they knew. Juni was telling me about it, it’s like how Hendery and Xuxi are best friends. For Nana, it’s Sicheng.”

“How can you tell them apart?”

“Hendery tends to walk around with his hands in his pockets, Nana makes herself look smaller, Juni walks tall but with small steps, Kunhang also walks tall but with larger steps, and Guanheng tends to look down when he walks.”

“Really? That’s all you go off of?”

“Yup,” Yangyang pulls a water bottle out of the fridge and hands it to you. “Speaking of, I’m sorry for like… you know… tying you to the bed, and all, I’m sorry. I didn’t know what I was thinking, of course you wouldn’t like that, I must’ve gotten carried away.” He pushes the door open and lets you out first. He sounded sincere, really, he did, but you couldn’t help but feel like there’s some ulterior motive behind it. If you learned one thing from being locked in here, it’s that you can’t trust what anyone says 100%, there’s always some hidden meaning and some hidden purpose behind what any of the inmates say, and you needed to remember that when speaking to any of them. You both sit down at one of the tables and he sighs.

“I won’t say ‘it’s okay’ if that’s what you’re waiting for, Yangyang,” you frowned. “You have to understand why I can’t just trust that right off the bat.”

“Yeah, I get it, I just… I didn’t want you to wander around the Sector while I was gone… it’s dangerous here, you know. You’ll never know what the other inmates are thinking,” he looked up at you from his sandwich, you knew there was some menacing truth behind it, but you preferred that you didn’t know.

“Yangyang?”

“Hmm?”

“Can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot.”

“What do you have to do to get in here?”

“Open the door,” Yangyang cracked a smile and your face fell flat. He nods awkwardly and clears his throat. “You have to have done something that goes against the laws of time. So like, we all killed someone, obviously, but like… we all had to have had some interference with something outside of our timeline, do you know what I mean?”

“Kind of?”

“Ugh, I’m not the best person to talk to about this, Kun’s better—”

“Not Kun!”

“You know what, actually wait, I’ll ask you about it later. Long story short, we each come from different timelines, the Warden, the one before Ten, was the one who had to give the go-ahead and open the gate for the Council to pick us up and drop us off here. And then _tada_ , here we are! Eating Jaehyun’s sandwiches!” Yangyang took another bite and swallowed happily. “That’s like the general gist of it, again, Kun could probably tell you more if you want to know. Now it’s my turn! I love playing twenty questions…”

“When did I say that…?”

“Why do you hate Kun so much? Like, I hate him too, don’t get me wrong, he always yells at me, but out of all of us he’s probably the most mentally stable.”

“Because,” you hesitated. You feel like you’ve had this conversation before. Why didn’t you like him so much? He’s only been helpful to you, he helped you find the flight records, made sure you didn’t get crushed under that shelf, but then again there was that ever-so-mysterious deal he made with Xiaojun, what was that all about? “He just doesn’t seem trustworthy.”

“Sorry, I just thought it was weird. He and Ten are super close, and Ten mentioned that he was your best friend, so I figured you’d like Kun.”

“Oh, I guess that makes sense,” you nodded.

“Your turn!”

“Uh…” you looked at the swinging double doors. “Who was I to you?”

“…” Yangyang sat in silence. “My turn! What’s your favorite color?”

“Green,” you decided not to press it. “Uh… Yangyang, is there anything I should know about Sector V?” He looks at you with a curious expression.

“I think you know as much as I do,” Yangyang hums. “So why did you steal Ten’s card? I mean, Hendery told me, but I kinda wanna hear it from you.”

“Ugh,” you rested your elbows on the table and slumped your shoulders. “I’ve been having these strange dreams, and they all tell me the same thing… to come here. So, I stole Ten’s card, and went in.”

“Sucks, now you’re stuck here for good.”

“Yeah, but that’s on me, I just feel bad for Ten, I hope the council doesn’t execute him.” Yangyang chokes on his sandwich.

“Wait what?”

“Yeah, that’s what happened to the Warden before my dad, one of the inmates escaped from the Sector so as a punishment he was killed. I hope the same doesn’t happen to Ten, it was my fault after all…”

“Holy shit, that’s wild, do you know which inmate it was?”

“Uh… I guess I remember his last name, but that was just Kim.”

“Oh, so it could be anyone,” Yangyang was slightly disappointed, but what could you do? You really didn’t remember.

“Hey, Yangyang?”

“Mmhmm?”

“You don’t happen to know what it was that Kun and Xiaojun were planning, do you?” He hummed across from you and looked off towards the door before leaning forward and, in a hushed voice, answered:

“Why do you think I was in the Warden’s Office?”

~

You sat up in the dark bedroom. Just like last time, you were only barely able to make out the outline of whatever furniture was in the room, and the only source of light was the small sliver of moonlight, but it was that light that shone brighter than the sun itself. The next thing you noticed was that, this time, you were alone. The area of the bed next to you was a mess, as if the person who was just in it left in a hurry, what with the pillow just barely hanging off the mattress and the comforter bundled up over you. Your hand ghosted that area gently, it was still warm, whoever was there had just left. Your eyes moved to the curtains, and curiosity got the better of you. You stepped out of bed, your feet coming into contact with the cold wooden floors, and you made your way to the curtains. You held onto both of them, debating for a moment whether or not you should open them, but, you figured, you were already here. You threw them open.

The world beyond it was beautiful.

The moon was shining bright, and the city before you was one you couldn’t help but marvel at, did you mention the ocean? The way the moon reflected off of it was breathtaking, even the ships in the distance added to the mesmerizing view. You couldn’t turn away, it was just so perfect, you were in awe. Was this really your world? Even the clouds in the sky were perfect, everything looked as if they were meticulously shaped by a doll maker, every single thing in your sights had a purpose, it had meaning.

With a soft smile, you turned away from the mirror, and gasped in horror at the sight before you.

It was the same bedroom, you were certain of it, but it looked like a beast had been murdered in it. Slashes covered the walls, blood splatters on the floor, there were chips and scratches on every piece of furniture. It was a scene straight out of a horror movie and you took a shaky step forward, rubbing your eyes harshly, silently hoping that when you opened them again the bedroom would be back to normal. But no, that was not the case. The only thing that seemed moderately normal about the bedroom was the bed itself, the covers were kept clean and it showed no signs of wear or tear.

Then the curtains shut behind you, and you didn’t dare make a single move.

“I’m sorry you had to see that,” the voice was so familiar yet so foreign. “There’s a reason why I keep the curtains closed.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, it’s not your fault,” the voice was remorseful. “Are you scared?”

“Just a little…”

“I’m sorry, I really am, I promised to keep you away from all the bad, but now I think you know the truth, (Y/N),” he laughs pitifully. “I’m not as perfect as you make me out to be, but would you still accept me all the same?” You thought for a moment, you felt guilty that you weren’t able to answer that question as soon as he asked, but what could you do? You were, for all you knew, standing in a room where a murder took place, but here you were. Staring into the darkness like it was your home.

“Of course I would…” the answer was quiet, but it rang loudly in your ears. You heard him sigh behind you and he approached you quietly. You felt him wrap his arms around you and pull you in close to him, he nuzzled his face into your shoulder and, maybe you were imagining things, but you thought he was crying.

“I can’t be the person your father wants me to be, but I can be the person you need. Even if you don’t remember us, please, at least let me support you. Because to not have you in my life, I believe, is a punishment worse than death.”

~

The doors swung open again and another person enters the room. You didn’t have to look at him to know who it was.

“You!” Xuxi’s voice was filled with anger and he stormed up to the two of you, you were half expecting him to pick you up and run, but he didn’t. Actually, he grabbed Yangyang. “You fucking klepto, where is it?!”

“I already told you that I don’t—” Yangyang shut up when a necklace fell out of his pocket. “Oh, haha, how’d that get there?”

“I don’t even know why you want it,” Xuxi dropped Yangyang and picked up the necklace, it was at that moment when he finally noticed you. “Hey, (Y/N),” he gave you a short wave and a small smile. You eyed him suspiciously.

“Aren’t you going to… say something?” You asked.

“What’s there to ask?” He slips the necklace back on and walks over to the kitchen. He comes back with Suh’s salad and shuts the door behind him. You took a quick look at the necklace before turning away, you didn’t want to be accused of staring, at least. You really didn’t notice anything major about it other than the two rings on it, but other than that it was pretty basic. He sits next to Yangyang and rolls his shoulders. “Is it just me or has free hours been a lot longer than usual?”

“Not just you, Xiaojun destroyed the key card.”

“Oh shit, does that mean we have free hours forever?” Xuxi was somewhat hopeful. “Damn that’s wild.”

“Yup, I say we eat Xiaojun first once we run out of food.”

“No way, he’s too boney. If we’re talking who will last us longer I think we should eat Sicheng first.”

“You’re right, we could easily ration him.”

“Um, can we not talk about this?” You cut into their conversation before it could take a turn for the worst.

“I guess,” Yangyang shrugs. He and Xuxi start talking about something to do with Hendery, you weren’t really listening, to be honest. You decided to eat slower, wanting to take your time to savor every bite because the odds of you not eating again after this was most likely very high. Part of you was a bit upset that Xuxi entered when he did, now you wouldn’t get to hear what Yangyang found out.

Now, as for Xuxi, he wasn’t a bad person either, looking past the obvious fact of him being a prisoner, that is. Sure, he was just an overall intimidating person but, like with Kun, he hasn’t actually done anything dangerous to you. If anything, he’s been helping you get out of potentially _really_ bad situations. You genuinely don’t think you would’ve figured out how to get out of his cell if it wasn’t for him, there’s no way you could’ve walked that on your own, at least. And he genuinely seemed like he was a good person, after all. You didn’t want to doubt him, there was something about him that told you he was a trustworthy person, but at the same time, to reiterate the same thing you had been repeating to yourself, not everyone in this Sector is 100% trustworthy.

“Oh, I got that thing from Xiaojun that you asked me to get,” Xuxi spoke up. He reached into his jacket and placed the crude paper on the table. “That thing, right?”

“Yes! I was wondering why I didn’t find it in there earlier,” Yangyang shoved the rest of his sandwich in his mouth and slid the paper in front of him. He swallowed his food before speaking again. “Oh, by the way, (Y/N), Xuxi and Hendery are in on my little counter plan against Xiaojun.” Well, forget what you said earlier, this might be more beneficial to you than you originally thought.

“ _And_ Kun,” Xuxi adds.

“Yeah, him too,” Yangyang dismisses him.

“Why do you not like him so much?”

“You don’t need to know that,” Yangyang looks over the paper, “I literally have no clue what this says.” You leaned over the table and turned the paper towards you.

“Fourth cycle, two intersections past Sicheng, one left, storage room.”

“How’d you read that?!” Xuxi and Yangyang spoke simultaneously. You looked down at the paper. How did you read that? The whole thing was just lines, dots, and spirals, so just basic shorthand, but you couldn’t recall a time you knew how to read shorthand, let alone learned how to read it at all.

“Oh, uh… good question, I dunno,” you shrugged. You took the paper again and read down the page. “Let’s see… Ah, it’s just details of the meeting, other than this small note, give me a second… ‘Get (Y/N)’s locket.’” You blinked once and squinted your eyes, bringing the paper closer to your face, is that really what it said? You read it over and over again, but that’s all you got from it.

“I’ve been looking all over for you two!” Hendery throws the door to the mess hall open and stares at the two of you. “Oh, and (Y/N) too, you should come also!”

“I swear if it’s another one of your—”

“No, Xuxi, it’s not, I already got Xiaojun to call Kun and drag Sicheng out, I don’t think this is normal, there is something seriously wrong,” Hendery digs his hands through his hair and Xuxi pushes off of the table. He places his hands on Hendery’s shoulders.

“Relax.”

“I’m trying _really_ hard not to switch right now, Guanheng really wants to see what’s going on but—”

“Relax,” Xuxi repeats himself, and Hendery nods. “Now where is this thing you’re telling us about?”

“Follow me,” Hendery walks out of the mess hall. You and Yangyang stay still for a moment longer before you follow him out. What could be so important that would prompt Hendery to call everyone to see it?

The group eventually came to a stop in front of one of the cells. The other inmates were already there, with Sicheng was leaning on the wall across from the group while Kun and Xiaojun were observing the door closely. As for the cell door, it looked just like all the other cells, same door frame, same frosted edges, the only difference was that it was pitch black inside, leaving the serial number on the door entirely unreadable.

“Have you guys tried opening it?” Xuxi speaks up first.

“Yeah, we each tried, but it’s still sealed,” Kun shakes his head. He now notices you behind the taller inmate and he shakes his head.

“What do you think it is?” Hendery asks.

“Well, it’s a cell door,” Xiaojun points out the obvious. “But we can’t read the serial number on it at all. I’m guessing it’s just an unused cell but…”

“Why would it be here, right?” Hendery fills in the blanks. “Whenever cells aren’t being used, they don’t show up in the Sector,” he turns to you and explains briefly. The group deliberated amongst themselves, and from what you got from it, Sicheng and Kun were very vocal about leaving the cell alone, while the rest wanted to figure out how to open it. You, on the other hand, weren’t so sure. You didn’t know what was behind it, and you weren’t sure if you wanted to know. While the group argued, you walked over to the cell door, trying your best to look inside. Then, you heard a rhythmic knock from inside, and you knew immediately. You placed your hand on the scanner, and the door slid open. Kun grabbed the back of your collar and dragged your back behind him. The inmates stood in complete silence, and they were all still with anticipation. Then, the inmate locked inside took a step into the dim lights of the sector.

“Hello, there.” A twisted smile appeared on the new inmate’s face.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 6.0K
> 
> Notes: So I ended up just cutting the 10K version of this in half, so Ch. 9 will be out relatively soon, maybe in like three or so days? That’s only to give you guys time to process this chapter hehehe, I hope you enjoy this. Like I said, we’re at the half way point of this series... but I think I forgot to mention that that included a certain something that will... actually, I said too much! Enjoy this chapter!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Death, Gun Violence, Violence, Confusion, Mentions of a Serial Killer, Mildly Graphic Descriptions of Violence

As quickly as his smile appeared, it was replaced with a terse expression, and he brought his hand up to his tensed forehead and sighed, clicking his tongue and shaking his head. You did your best to ignore the scarlet that stained his hands, you didn’t want to think about where it came from.  


“You,” he pauses, waiting for his brain to stop pounding against his skull, then, without opening his eyes, gestured towards you, “have _no_ idea… what I’ve been through… just to get back in here.”

“Ten.” You felt everything crash down on you at the point. He was here, your best friend and the Warden, and he was here to get you out. There was nothing more you could’ve been thankful for, but that was just the problem. He was _here_. And he walked out of a cell. “You won’t be able to come back out with me… will you?” You noticed the ‘V’ on his neck and you already knew what the answer was. 

“I was able to convince the Council to let me keep my Warden status until I got you out. Once that’s been finished, the new Warden will be trained and put to work, but what else could be done? They didn’t want to make a new card without proof that the old one was destroyed, but how could I prove that if I couldn’t get into the Sector in the first place? It’s a catch-22.” You never thought you’d see Ten like this, so _hopeless_. He had already resigned himself to his fate, but you sure as _hell_ weren’t going to let that happen. You almost succumbed yourself, but now you have a chance, and you didn’t want Ten to get punished because of your actions.

“But it’s my fault, I’m sure they’ll allow an appeal—”

“You’ve always been the dumb one out of the two of us, did you know that?” Ten lips fell to a flat line, there was a new tone you didn’t recognize, one filled with intense distaste, it was demeaning to listen to, and you didn’t like the way it settled in you. Something was wrong, what happened to him? What did he do? “What did you think I had to do to get in here, (Y/N)?” You shook your head and took a step forward, but Kun threw his arm out in front of you.

“Let’s not do anything rash.” His voice was stern. But Ten pushed him away and glared at you.

“Do you even have a _clue_ as to how long it’s been outside?! Months, (Y/N), it’s been _months_. Six to be exact, I spent six months jumping back and forth between timelines trying to establish some kind of connection but instead I looped you with these idiots and, good lord, I have no clue how I finally got through to you. And when I finally did you not only _lost_ the card but you _destroyed_ it as well!”

“Actually, Xiaojun did that,” Yangyang raised his hand and gestured to the culprit.

“Doesn’t matter. I hid a different timeline’s version of the key somewhere in here, we just have to find it. Either way, we only have one shot of getting you back out,” Ten instructs. You stared at him for a brief moment, you’d finally be able to get out, but what was with this tension in the room? Again, Kun steps in front of you.

“Ten, I can’t let that happen.”

Then all hell broke loose.

Sicheng pulled you out of the way when Ten threw his first punch. Xuxi stepped in to defend Kun, Hendery tried to mediate, Yangyang got excited and clocked Xiaojun, it was all a mess. You never thought you’d live to see the day your best friend initiate a fight on his own, let alone witness him punching someone, but here you were. Horrified at the turn of events. It was a true mess, and you didn’t think you’d live to see the day where Ten was able to debilitate Xuxi, but you were corrected when you saw him use Xuxi’s own jacket to tie his wrists together. Once he was done with that he turned back to what started the original fight.

“I killed you once and I’ll fucking _do it again_!” Ten had his hands wrapped around Kun’s neck and there was no other way to make it clearer to you, whoever this was in front of you wasn’t your best friend, not anymore. Kun’s hands moved up to Ten’s arms and he pulled them away. Hendery grabbed the back of Ten’s jacket and pulled him off, but Yangyang shoved Xiaojun in between the two and he ended up as Ten’s new victim.

“And _you_ ,” Ten pushed him to the ground and held him there with his foot on Xiaojun’s chest, if it was any quieter you were certain that you would’ve heard something breaking. “Now I know for a fact that you know things that you’re not supposed to, care to tell me how you got the locket in the first place?” Kun tackled Ten and pinned him to the door, but Ten was able to recollect himself fast enough to switch places. Ten pulled a switchblade out of his pocket and held it up to Kun’s neck. No time to question about the locket, you had to stop this before someone died in front of you.

“Ten, no!” You ran over to him, but Hendery got in the way.

“Don’t look, don’t look, don’t look,” you didn’t know if he was saying it for you or for himself, because you saw the pained look behind his eyes, you’ve seen it multiple times by now, he was switching, and you didn’t know who would decide to front this time. 

“I’m sorry for this,” you pushed Hendery out of the way and grabbed onto Ten’s arm. “Snap out of it, Ten!”

“Back off,” he pushed you away and Sicheng caught you before you could fall. Your hand flew to the wall to stabilize yourself, then you saw Kun and Ten fall back… into the cell. You looked at where your hand was and, sure enough, the scanner. Kun stumbled back outside and the door shut, leaving Ten banging his fist on the inside. You all stood still, some people catching their breaths and some processing what was going on, but you already knew what you had to do.

“(Y/N), listen to us, you can’t leave the Sector,” Xiaojun took his time to push off of the floor, rubbing the area that Ten nearly crushed. “Please, you have to understand, Kun and I are trying to stop history from repeating itself.”

“I know you have reason to not trust us, but I swear, it’s for your own good,” Kun was holding onto the shallow, but bleeding, cut on his neck. He reached out to you and you flinched away. Never had you seen a more destroyed expression behind the inmate’s eyes, you felt bad almost, but you knew what you had to, how good could his intentions be if he wanted to keep you in here? In this dangerous area? With six, and now maybe even _seven_ , psychopaths on your tail? But there was this strange nagging feeling inside of you, something that yelled at you to trust them, at least Kun if not Xiaojun, there was some innate sense in you that told you that they were right. However, the voice in your head that screamed danger was louder, and much more demanding. You glanced at the scanner from your peripheral, and Kun followed your movements. “(Y/N). Don’t.” You reopened the cell and took off down the hallway.

 _‘Don’t look back, don’t look back, don’t look back,’_ you repeated the phrase over and over to yourself, you didn’t want to know who was following you, and if someone was, you didn’t want to know how close they were.

“Fuck, why didn’t you tell me where the damn card was hidden?!” You couldn’t help but curse out loud, it would take you days to find it at this rate, and those seven will only fight each other for so long until they come looking for you. You ran into the room furthest down the hall and slammed it behind you, locking the door as soon as you could. You kept your hand on the doorknob and rested your forehead against the metal door, trying your best to process what just happened. With shaky breaths, you stayed like that for a few minutes. It was then when you noticed the mass of wires on the ground. You looked behind you and you saw that they were scattered all throughout the room, hooked up to various cameras, monitors, and recording devices. Then your eyes stopped in the middle of the room, at a particular table with a singular lamp on it. You sat at one of the chairs and stared at the papers in front of you. They were littered with shorthand notes, dots, slashes, and the like. Phonetic transcriptions, if your memory served you right.

You were in the interrogation room.

You looked up at one of the monitors and saw yourself sitting at the lonesome desk, then you looked back down at the papers. You flipped through them slowly, wondering if there was something important for you and, lo and behold, there was.

Under the stack was a box wrapped in basic computer paper, and written in large letters above that was ‘(Y/N).’ You recognized the handwriting easy, blocky and in all capitals, this was your father’s handwriting. You carefully unwrapped the paper and picked up the folded note that was underneath it and read what he wrote down.

> _I’m hoping this tape makes it to the next timeline, (Y/N), and I’m hoping that you are reading this in good health. I don’t have much time. 1010 explained much to me, but I never did believe him fully. Watch this tape and do with it what you will, match the recording with it too, I never did get the funds to get better recording equipment, so I apologize for the quality._
> 
> _Be careful with who you trust in the Sector, although none of them are 100% trustworthy, they all want what’s best. Choose your allies wisely, and understand what your actions will do in the greater scheme of the timelines. Not everyone can win, but not everyone will lose. They all have pasts that are unspoken of, and maybe you’ll learn to decode them, and restore at least one of their timelines to its proper nature. And by nature of the Sector… Never mind. Just remember, that not everyone is meant to be saved. Choose wisely, (Y/N), stay safe, and be smart._
> 
> _\- Your father, Park Hyunjun_

You stared at the four tapes in the middle of the paper. Two were labeled ‘TL8: 24 January 2022’ and had either an A or a V written on top in marker, and the other two were labeled ‘TL9: 24 January 2022’ with the similar A or V letters. You were certain that the A meant audio and the V meant video, so you took the earlier tapes first and placed them into the closest monitor to you. You switched inputs and, sure enough, your father.

~

“You know the drill, inmate.”

“Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul, 1010, Black Room, conviction date January 10, 2019, although today is January 24, 2020. Let’s see, I’m a convicted serial killer, had eight victims prior to the four or five I conveniently helped you get rid of here. My original timeline was TL6, if my memory of the map of timelines serves me correctly. And that should be it for the first parts of your little checklist, Mr. Warden.”

“Wonderful,” the Warden scribbles a few things on his notepad. “Let’s skip formalities, 1010. How did you figure it out?”

“Figure what out, Warden?”

“Don’t be dumb. I saw what you were hiding in the White Room.”

“The White Room? You think Kun could’ve hidden _anything_ in there?” Ten was smug, his default expression. The Warden slammed a file on the desk, but Ten kept his poker face.

“Open it.” Ten stared at the file, but he leaned forward and opened the file. “Read it.”

“It’s in shorthand I can’t—”

“I said _read it_.”

“Fourth cycle, two intersections past Sicheng, one left, storage room.”

“Now was that so hard?” The Warden turned the file back to him. “A meeting spot, I suppose.”

“Sure.”

“Were the other inmates in on it?”

“No.”

“So it was just you and 1011?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“We figured that we’d tell the others once we ironed out the details.”

“Now, care to tell me what it is exactly you two were planning?” The Warden sat back down on his chair and stared at Ten. Ten glanced over at the box filled with tapes next to the Warden.

“You know everything, don’t you?”

“I just want to hear it from your mouth.”

“Last time I ever trust Dejun with camera locations,” Ten rolled his eyes and sighed. “What do you think the two inmates who have been in here the longest would be planning, sir?”

“You tell me.”

“Escape.”

“And your escape just happened to include shutting down both the main power and oxygen supplies for the entirety of the moon station.”

“And that’s a bad thing because…?”

“You’re despicable, do you know that?” The Warden took out a tape and placed it on the table. “This was from one week ago, aren’t you curious to hear it?”

“I already know what’s on it, sir.”

“I’m sure you do,” the Warden had a condescending smile. “You’ve been caught red-handed, 1010. Admit it and I will make sure you won’t end up like the last three inmates who were in here before 10110, 111, and 101100?”

“What is there to admit, Warden? You already know the whole plan for us to escape, what other information do you need?” Ten taps on the desk and the Warden remains silent, it’s like he knows what he wants to ask, but he doesn’t have the courage to do it. “Oh, you must mean the _collateral damage_ that will result from our escape, don’t you? You want to know if there was another way, a way that wouldn’t involve bringing down the station with us, right? There isn’t. If we’re escaping, we need to make sure we’re not followed. Surely, you know this.”

“I do,” the Warden had an unreadable expression on his face, there’s no telling what he was thinking, or what his intentions truly were. “I finally took the time to look into your case, 1010.”

“What did you find, Warden?”

“Your first seven victims, they’re uncannily similar to your prison mates, aren’t they?”

“I still remember the day I killed my timeline’s Qian Kun,” Ten’s voice dropped. “It was so _messy_. I couldn’t believe I was so sloppy, I left behind so many clues, but thank god the local detectives were just idiots. And Xuxi, oh he was a bit harder, probably the hardest one to restrain, but as always with the more taller ones, you go for their legs. Dejun wasn’t that hard, actually, it looked like he already resigned himself to his fate the moment I stepped into his apartment. But Sicheng, he wasn’t a fighter, but he was a runner, had to take a break after him. Guanheng wasn’t too bad either, very accident-prone, easy target. But, goodness, how could I forget Yangyang? I myself almost died when I was targeting him, which is natural when you’re going for the detective who was assigned to your case, is it not?”

“I’m guessing that’s where the scar on your chest came from.”

“Yeah, it was a deep cut, I’m surprised that I didn’t bleed out on the spot. I’m just glad that my (Y/N) didn’t find out so soon… and when she did, oh, what a true saint she is. So innocent, anyone would’ve wanted her for himself,” Ten glared at the Warden, who looked like he wanted nothing more than to snap Ten’s neck right then and there. “It’s a shame she got caught up in that ordeal with Detective Liu. And it’s even worse that it was my bullet that was meant for Liu. But things happen, I suppose…”

“Fuck you, 1010.”

“Old habits die hard, I presume,” Ten looked straight into the camera.

“This is just for insurance, inmate.”

“Alright then,” Ten sighs. “Your move, Warden. You could have all seven of us killed at this very instant, stop the escape, save the moon station, a wonderful end, right?”

“But it’s never that easy with you.”

“No, sir, it isn’t,” Ten breaks the handcuffs he’s in and rests his head on the palms of his hands. “I have a feeling that there’s more to this interrogation than just the run of the mill questioning, isn’t there?”

“I want to make a deal with you, 1010.”

“Oh?”

“As the Warden, I’m sure you know this, I have a very special ability. I’ll turn back time, and you’ll stop this same turn of events from happening. You know what the big events are, as long as one of them doesn’t occur, then the timeline should end differently. Of course, there is a catch, since I’m sending you back in time during this same lifetime you’ll not only lose your memories but also wake up at the proper age, but that shouldn’t be a problem,” the Warden was speaking faster than he was thinking, it was obvious from all the small aside remarks he was making. “You have to do this. 1010, I’ll be honest. Every inmate in this Sector is a piece of shit, you most of all, but in cases like 1000 and 111, some of you shouldn’t even be convicted. I have no clue why you’re in this prison, there’s nothing on your records that have anything to do with rips or interferences from other timelines.”

“You’re sugarcoating, aren’t you? You don’t give a damn about us, why do you want me to go back and stop the events from happening, Warden?”

“I don’t want my daughter to die a meaningless death _again_.”

“Oh, right, did I ever apologize for that?”

“Stop.”

“I tried, Mr. Warden, I really did.”

“The footage says otherwise. Which one of you seven was it? Which one of you killed her?” The Warden had a dangerous look in his eyes, predatory, almost, he had set his sights on his goals and he wasn’t going to back down. Ten, however, had a similar resolve.

“It wasn’t me, if that’s what you’re implying,” Ten scoffs.

“I know you know something about it.”

“Mr. Warden, it’s not my fault she got locked in the interrogation room.”

~

You stood up immediately, looking around you at every nook and cranny, every corner, every hide space. You weren’t alone, and you should’ve known. You ran to the interrogation room door, unlocked it, and tried to push open the door but… it was stuck. You tried to pull it back this time, but no dice. You turned back around and leaned on the door. Who else was here? It was silent aside from the tape that was playing and the distant sound of pipes. There was no other sign of life in this room, that much had to be true, it had to, but you weren’t just going to settle for that, hell no. You walked the perimeter of the room, knocking on the walls to listen for any hollow spaces, you looked behind each monitor and under each surface, even under the table you were just sitting at. But, as you expected, you were the only person in here. You wobbled the doorknob again but, to no surprise, the door remained fixed. 

Your eyes drifted back to the monitor, a new conversation taking place, and one that you knew you had to listen to, and you slowly made your way back to it, pulling up a chair to watch it this time.

~

“Do you agree with our terms?”  


“Hmm, remind me again what I get out of this?”

“I get the satisfaction of knowing that my ignorance doesn’t cause the moon station to, essentially, blow up, and I get to avoid the repercussions in future timelines. You get the joy of knowing you won. You wanted (Y/N) in the end, right? This is a surefire way to get her. And if it means saving the greater good, then I’m willing to sacrifice anything.”  


“And how will I remember what happened?”  


“I’ll set up a paradox, an item that shouldn’t exist in the next timeline, usually interacting with those objects will create a rift in the timelines and restore your memories from this timeline to your new one. In my office, look for (Y/N)’s locket, I’ll figure out a way to send it your way.”  


Ten laughs and kicks his feet up on the table, pushing the keys that were next to the Warden to the floor.

“Let me guess, silver, circular-shaped, plays the song Clair de Lune when you open it?”

“Yes, exactly,” the Warden nods his head. “You would know, wouldn’t you?”

“I was going to give it for our anniversary but… well, you know what happened,” that same twisted smile crept up on his face and the Warden shuddered. “I wonder how you’ll pull this one off, Mr. Warden. You’re a very surprising man, but not one that I envy.”  


“The first night you got here you killed almost every person in this sector, inmate, and you’ve done it without me noticing in a single night. You’ll figure it out.”  


“It’s not like it was hard. All eight of them were rather… weak-willed. All it took was for me to ask about the inmate that got away and that was it,” Ten leaned back on his chair and hummed. “It’s a horrible thing, isn’t it? To know you’ve lost, Mr. Warden. To the point that you’re enlisting in my help. But I must admit, it feels so very nice to see you grovel. What are you going to say to me, sir? Something you’d like me to know?”  


“Don’t get too cocky, inmate.”  


“Don’t get too cocky? Mr. Warden, I believe I’ve won, you have to admit it.”  


“Sure, you won, you’ve figured out a way to escape the Sector and bring those six out with you, but at what cost? Have you even realized what you’ve done? Do you know the-”  


“Of course I do!” Ten slammed his hand on the table and the Warden kept his stone expression on. “Why do you think I’m negotiating with your deal, Mr. Warden?”  


“We’ve gone through more than enough details, what more do you want?”  


“The card. Where is it?”  


“I left it in my notebook.”  


“And the locket?”  


“It’s somewhere in my office, unless 10110 got to it. As long as you’re holding it, you just need to listen for a keyword, I’ll leave it inside the locket so that, hopefully, you would say it aloud when you read it and your memories will be brought back to you of this timeline. Paradox items are a strange phenomena, and this item, in particular, is a very delicate one in comparison to most, it has existed in now eight timelines, when it shouldn’t have at all, any utterance, purposefully or mistakenly, of a keyword that stemmed from that timeline will cause the holder’s memories to return, so you must be careful. Listen for the word ‘Domino,’ it’ll only work once since this timeline is already fragile enough as is, so make sure you’re the only one holding it when someone says that word.”  


“That shouldn’t be a problem, now as for making sure I don’t get sent back in here?”  


“As long as you refrain from killing anyone else, you should be fine, I’m sure you’ll remember at least that much. So make sure whoever’s next on your list is taken care of. Any more questions, inmate?”

“No… but I do have something to tell you.”  


“Go ahead.”  


“You’re next,” Ten pulled the cord off mic and pulled out a gun. There was no audio remaining, but it wasn’t necessary to see how your father was killed. With a bullet to the head, there were no chances of survival.

~

The tape ejected itself and landed on the floor. You stared at the static screen for a bit longer before you grabbed onto the next two tapes and pushed them in. It was just like ripping off a bandaid, it had to be. Plus, that wasn’t really your dad, he was just a previous timeline’s version. He wasn’t the same as the Park Hyunjun who took in your best friend after both of his parents succumbed to moonsight, he wasn’t the same Park Hyunjun who would come home after a tiring day at the Sector and read you bedtime stories, he wasn’t the same Park Hyunjun who was killed outside of the moon station.

He was different.

Surely, he was. He had to be, and so was the Ten who was sitting across from him. The Warden said it himself, Ten lost all of his memories from that timeline, timeline eight you’re assuming from the tape. And nothing seemed to change when he gifted you the locket much later in your teen years, could it be that he hasn’t activated the paradox yet? You pulled your locket out of your shirt and opened it, letting the soft sound of the music box slow your still racing heart while you looked at the picture of yourself and, next to it on the lid of the locket, the delicate engraving ‘Domino.’ You thought it was a brand name, at the time. One from another moon station that you just didn’t know about, but you never questioned it. You wondered why you never activated the paradox, you yourself had said the word ‘domino’ many times, or at least you thought so, maybe it had something to do with the nature of paradoxes, and it’s not one you were willing to take the time to learn.

The screen came back to life, it was a similar sight to the first one.

~

“You know the drill, inmate.”

“Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul, 1010—” Ten is cut off by the sound of a gunshot from outside of the room. “What the hell was that?” The Warden placed his hand down on the panel of buttons next to him and pressed a few buttons before leaning into the mic attached to it.

“Suh, Jeong, please investigate the sound from section two by the interrogation room,” he removes his hand from the board. “Continue, inmate.”

The rest of the tape continued just as the last tape did, it was verbatim, the very same exchange, save for the first part occurred with no differences at all, it wasn’t until the very end where it changed.

“No… but I do have something to tell you.”  


“Go ahead.”  


“You’re next,” but this time, before Ten had a chance to pull the mic off of its cord, the door slammed open and another shot is fired, this time into Ten’s head, and the inmate falls to the floor. The new intruder sits across from the Warden, who had his own gun drawn.

“Mr. Warden! Long time no see, I’m glad you’re in good condition,” the new Ten smiles and throws his arms out, but the Warden cocks his gun.

“Right, right, we weren’t friends in this timeline, makes sense,” Ten sits down and looks at the other version of himself. “Green highlights, ugh, I do think the pink serves me better,” he runs a bloodied hand through his hair and the Warden clenches his jaw.

“Who are you?”

“The new Warden of the Sector, you, unfortunately, _expired_ ,” Ten laughs and holds up a badge to prove it. “The TL8 version of the inmates are actually very weak compared to the ones in TL9, they’re rather soft actually. It wasn’t hard for me to get rid of them before making it here, we couldn’t have any loose ends, especially when this timeline is so closely interlocked with my own, so I couldn’t take any chances. Look, Mr. Previous Warden, you just happened to be the soonest and the easiest version of Park Hyunjun I was able to get to without messing up TL9 more than it already has been, and I needed to ask you something.” Ten reloads his gun and keeps it trained on the Warden.

“Look, Mr. Park, I’ve already killed everyone trying to get in here, and I have no problem killing one more person if you piss me off. So answer carefully, alright? And we won’t have any problems.”

“Domino.”

“What?” Ten gave him a confused look, but he rolled his eyes and continued. “I’m assuming that was just the lack of natural oxygen in this damn Sector. Look, (Y/N) got herself trapped in the Sector. So I ended up making six jumps in total to establish that residual connection that happens when you bring people from the past to the present, or whatever, your notes really weren’t that helpful.”

“You know there’s a _reason_ why we don’t do that, and why we let the Council handle the actual picking up.”

“Yeah, I figured that out six jumps too late. I was wondering what (Y/N) was on about when it came to her bizarro soulmate dreams but, huh, turns out it was my fault.”

“The timelines are _delicate_ —”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, chill, old man,” Ten cut him off. “Either way, worked out just fine, I was able to establish the connection and, well won’t you look at that, the keycard was destroyed.”

“You don’t remember a damn thing that happened in this timeline, do you?”

“No, and frankly, I don’t give a fuck,” Ten leaned forward. “You were the Warden for a much longer time than I was, and you had much more training than myself. How do I get back in?”

“You can’t without that key card,” the Warden was stern. “That’s your only way in, and knowing the Council, they wouldn’t make a new card unless you showed them proof that the first one was destroyed. They wouldn’t want a repeat with Kim Minseok.”

“Oh yeah, the Warden before you said it was destroyed and turns out one of the inmates had it and escaped.”

“Did they catch him in TL9?”

“Yup, caught and executed.”

“Good,” the Warden places his gun down. “There’s only one other way to get in the sector, and I’m sure that you as the Warden know that.”

“Yeah, that’s what I was afraid of. But that’s why I’m also here, to meet that requirement.”

“Interference from another timeline.”

“Right on. I thought killing another version of me would work but I’m still here, so clearly it doesn’t,” Ten groans. “Even if that was a past version of me, it’s a good thing time works the way it does.”

“Otherwise you’d be dead, if that was a past version of you.”

“Yup. Your past becomes your present, and thus it doesn’t affect the timeline that led you to this position, or at least that’s what your notes said, Mr. Warden.”

“That is true. I can tell that you don’t have a full grasp over the concept of time yet, do you?”

“Maybe I should’ve kept TL9 you alive long enough to have my questions answered.”

“But you didn’t, because no matter what timeline you’re from, you are always the same, 1010. Brash, impulsive, and horribly good at keeping it hidden.”

“True. Now, I think you know what I’m about to ask next.” Ten holds his hand out and the Warden sighs. He opens his notebook and pulls out a familiar red card.

“The moment I place this in your hands, this will become the qualification for ‘interference from another timeline,’ it will be removed from your belongings, so you better hide it as soon as you take it, and pray that it carries over into your timeline, but for reasons you’ll soon find out, it should so all should go according to plan, we don’t have much time before the Council shows up and notifies me to open the time lock, are you ready?”

“You’re oddly very eager to allow this to happen.”

“Just get (Y/N) away from those psychopaths.”

“Of course, Mr. Park. You’d be surprised to learn how close we had gotten in the new timeline.”

“I don’t care.”

“Right, of course, well, hand away,” the Warden dropped the card in Ten’s hand and Ten ran out of the room as soon as he could to hide the key. The Warden pulled out a piece of paper and started scribbling a note onto it, presumably the same one in your hands right now, then he turned off the mic and video.

~

The tapes ejected again, and you were left in silence. You held them in your hands, was it strange that although you were terrified you felt oddly warm? Realistically speaking, it was probably seeing your father again after a little more than a year now, he looked the exact same since before he was killed. It was an odd feeling in your heart, to see a deadman talking, to hear him talk about you again.

You were going insane.

How long have you been in here?

You held the two videotapes in your hand, each of them saying that both of them were about five hours long. You put both of them down on the table, and you walked over to the door again. You were certain that it was going to be stuck, but you tried it anyway. And it remained closed, of course, why would it have changed?

But as soon as you backed away, the doorknob shook, and pounded, and finally it got knocked off by some immense amount of force, and the door swung open.

“You need to hide, now, before any of the others find you,” Sicheng was out of breath, and the chains on his ankles were broken, but he still held his hand out to you. Out of all of the inmates, he was probably the one you trusted the most. The one who hasn’t tried to kill you, the one who actually tried to push you away. But this time he held his hand out to you, he offered a way to keep you safe. “Please, I don’t want what happened in my timeline to repeat itself. Let me help you.”

You took his hand and ran with him.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 5.7K
> 
> Notes: 😗
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Mentions of Suicide, Fire, Implications of Stalking, Violence

“Where are we going?!” You ask him. Sicheng takes multiple turns down multiple hallways. You were used to this sight, the hallways that seem to never end unless you were particularly unlucky, sometimes you wonder how long you’ve been in here. Ten once mentioned that it had been weeks, but that was… a while ago. “Sicheng!”

“Please, _please_ , just trust me,” Sicheng looked back at you before turning back forward, and you couldn’t help but remember those few dreams you had. At the back of the motorcycle, with the city lights surrounding you, those times he’d look back at you, it was somewhat similar to now, wasn’t it? It was a weak comparison, but one you couldn’t help but make. After all, how could you not think back to those rushing lights? What with the hallways of the Sector blending into each other at this point. Dong Sicheng, he’s the only person who you’ve seen in your dreams, the only person from the Sector, at least. You looked down at his ankles, the ball attached to either of the shackles had been broken off, but the cut was anything but clean, if anything, he must’ve yanked them off himself, and part of you wondered where that strength came from, but another part of you didn’t want to know. You had this specific image of Sicheng stuck in your head, and for some reason, thinking otherwise made you uneasy.

But there was this other thing about him, something that made you want to stop everything in its tracks, and tell him that it will all be alright. You knew it had something to do with what he said to you in his cell, that felt like it was so long ago now. You’ve learned many things, you’ve learned many truths, many lies, and many secrets. And there are yet more to uncover, and you fear that you won’t be able to figure them out. At least, not all of them. But Sicheng was a good place to start, there was something different in him, some newfound vigor, and you knew it would only be for the best. Ten has said it himself, if there was one person you could trust in the Sector, it was Sicheng, and so far he’s done nothing but show you that his intentions were good.

But then a certain thought hit you, and it made you stop in your tracks. He turned around to look at you, or more specifically, behind you. He looked like he was rushed, he needed to go _now_ , but you stayed put.

“What’s wrong?” He asks. You wanted to trust him, like how you did with every inmate when you first met them. But where did that get you? Every inmate you’ve trusted has stabbed you in the back someway, somehow, directly or indirectly, and you’ve ended up worse than when you initially found them. Now your natural instincts were saying that Sicheng was safe, but your brain is telling you to run.

“Sicheng… I’m sorry,” you choked back a sob, why was this so hard? “But… I can’t trust you.”

You saw the exact moment his heart broke, it was so clear in his eyes, and you have never regretted saying anything more than what you just did. If you could take it back, you would, you would do it in a heartbeat, but what has been said has been said.

“Makes sense,” his voice was dull. “Everyone else has treated you horribly, even I pushed you away at first,” Sicheng’s voice was so small, it almost scared you. He let go of your hand and nodded to himself.

“Sorry, I overstepped my boundaries, I should’ve known you wouldn’t trust me right away,” he says. He turns to leave, but you grab onto his wrist again.

“Wait! You didn’t let me finish,” you pulled him back to you. “I can’t trust you, not yet, so you’re going to have to give me a reason to, Sicheng. So far every inmate in here has put me in some situation where I’ve either wanted to scream until my vocal cords blew out or even kill myself, give me a reason to want to live.” Sicheng stared at you, that same resolve from earlier slowly returning.

“I promise, I’ll get you out of here, and alive. But you’re going to have to put just a little trust in me for this,” Sicheng says. “Please, let me correct what I did wrong in the first place.”

“Okay.”

So when he ushered you into the med bay and locked the door behind him, you were so _very_ shocked to see Kun and Xiaojun waiting for you.

“Just hear them out, okay?” Sicheng leaned up against the door and blocked the handle.

No point in trying to escape now, you have no choice but to hear what they say. Plus, you wanted to give Sicheng the benefit of the doubt.

“Fine, but none of you will come any closer to me than you already are,” you pointed a finger at their spot on the other side of the room, and Kun nodded.

“That should be fine,” he nods. “Xiaojun, I’ll let you start.” He gestures for the other man and Xiaojun walks over to one of the nurse’s desks and sits on it. Then he pulls out a tattered notebook, one you recognized from the Boiler Room easily. It was damaged and basically falling apart, but it still looked to serve its purpose well. Xiaojun tossed it towards you and it landed at your feet. You picked it up slowly, it was heavy from all the moisture it gathered from the Boiler Room, but it wasn’t as bad as you had expected it to be. You opened it to the first page, it was filled with senseless phrases, random words in varying sizes and styles. The next page was more organized, and as you continued on the notes became more intricate, but what you noticed the most was the labels ‘TL8’ and ‘TL9’ next to certain passages. You shut the notebook and turned your attention towards Xiaojun.

“It’s probably best if I start from the beginning, (Y/N), I suggest you get comfortable, this is going to be a long one.” He gestures towards one of the beds and you move over to the closest one near you, sitting at the edge of it and waiting for him to start. “Alright, if you have any questions, feel free to stop me at any point.”

~

“Fucking hell…” Xiaojun pushed himself up against a wall and waited for his spinning vision to come to a stop. “Why does that kid hate me so much?” Xiaojun groans. He looks around the mess of a cell room he was in, Yangyang’s to be exact. The Warden had made him go grab the younger boy for his interrogation since he just happened to be the closest one in the vicinity of the Warden at the time and, to say the least, it did not end well. As soon as Xiaojun walked into the cell, Yangyang bashed one of his spray cans on his head and knocked him out immediately. It seems that the Warden got impatient and had someone else pick Yangyang up, considering that he wasn’t present in the room. It was at this moment when Xiaojun noticed something twinkle at the corner of his eye, something that reflected the hanging lights, he walked over to it and picked it up.

“What are you doing here?” He holds the silver locket in his hands the same way anyone would hold a piece of thin glass. Xiaojun studied it carefully and, sure enough, it looked like the exact same one he kept in his nightstand drawer, the same one he saved for _their_ anniversary. But why the hell was it in Yangyang’s cell? He would look even more suspicious if he held onto it himself, so he figured he should return the locket to the Warden, there’s no way Yangyang came in with this locket anyway. But curiosity got the better of the inmate, after all, there was no way it should be here. He opened it slowly and, sure enough, Clair de Lune began to play. “What the hell…?” Xiaojun muttered under his breath. He shut the locket and walked out of the cell, keeping it concealed in his hand while he made his way to the Warden’s Office.

Once he got there, he knocked on the door harshly.

“It’s 1000,” he announces.

“Come in,” the Warden’s voice was tired. Xiaojun opened the door and walked in, immediately noticing the Warden bandaging his hand.

“I take it that Yangyang was being difficult today?”

“He smashed the camera over my hand, what do you think?”

“That might have been my fault, I told you not to send me to get him.”

“Right, I ended up having 1011 get him, he always listens to him for whatever reason,” the Warden sighs. “What do you need, 1000?”

“I found this in Yangyang’s cell, it didn’t look like it belonged there, so I figured I’d give it to you,” Xiaojun held the locket up and the Warden’s hand immediately flew to his pocket.

“How did that little maniac get that?” He mumbles. “Thank you, 1000, I’ll take that back,” he holds his hand out.

“Interesting how Yangyang works,” Xiaojun starts walking towards the Warden. “You say one thing and it just triggers him.”

“I must agree, it’s like a domino effect.”

Xiaojun stopped in his tracks, well, to put it more precisely, the world came to a standstill altogether. The sounds of the Boiler Room stopped, the sounds of dripping water were no more, and the Warden remained frozen in place. Xiaojun looked around him, even the ceiling fan above him had stopped. His eyes landed on the clock mounted on the wall next to him, with the pendulum below it frozen in place. Then came the intense headache. Xiaojun dropped the locket, the small piece of jewelry opening on contact with the floors, and put both of his hands to his head, it felt like his head would split in half if he didn’t hold it together. He clenched his jaw and swallowed back the groans of pain, but soon it overcame him and he sunk to the ground, the world wavered around him, and his brain felt like it was doing backflips and somersaults alike.

It was almost poetic, hearing the soft tune coming from the locket, all it did was cause Xiaojun’s head to spin even more. Different scenes began to flash in front of him, memories he shouldn’t remember, people he didn’t recognize, and even conversations that he couldn’t recall. His hand fell to the floor, and he bunched up the rug beneath it, while his other hand hit the side of his head harshly, trying to distract himself from the pain. But nothing worked, his eyes focused on the locket in front of him, and he reached out to get it, maybe if he stopped its music, he’d be relieved of this pain. But he relented, and his hand moved back up to the other side of his head. Xiaojun shut his eyes tight, but it did very little for the rising nausea in his system.

“1000? 1000?! What’s wrong? What happened?” Xiaojun opened his eyes and looked at the Warden, who was now staring at him with a very well justified concern. Xiaojun looked around himself, the ceiling fan was spinning again, the sounds of the Sector have returned, and the clock continued to tick away, all was back to normal. Xiaojun shook his head.

“Nothing, sir, I’m sorry,” Xiaojun handed the locket to the Warden and let him help him up. “I’m going to go,” Xiaojun dismissed himself, leaving behind a very confused Warden.

With every step he took, a new memory returned, things he didn’t remember, things he shouldn’t remember. But one specific memory stood out to him. He was leaning against the Interrogation Room door, listening very carefully to the conversation that took place inside, no doubt it was the Warden and a voice he didn’t recognize, they were talking about a plan, something that would’ve resulted in the creation of a new timeline, certainly, but why does he remember this? Xiaojun was already inside of his cell when he felt the crippling migraine come back on, he held onto one of the rails for support while he fell back onto the ground again, trying to fight the battle that raged in his head.

Memories began overlapping, exchanges that he didn’t recall ever happening, but the most questionable one was with a certain unfamiliar inmate. This unknown was rather close with the rest of the inmates, or at least, that’s what it seemed like. Xiaojun covered his face with his hands and a new scene formed in his thoughts, the same one that kept popping up every other second since that exchange in the Warden’s Office. He watched the whole exchange play out in his thoughts, he internalized every word said, and slowly the thoughts and feelings came back.

“Ten.” His face fell into a scowl. That was his name, had to be, the inmate that was in the Sector the longest. He was planning an escape with Kun, Qian Kun, right, inmate 1011. Now he remembered everything clearly. Every moment that transpired in that previous timeline. He overheard their plan before, every word of it. But there was something the two of them were keeping from the other inmates, so Xiaojun sold them out. He told the Warden everything, and once he called Ten in for the interrogation, he listened to every word, but a very particular phrase stood out to him: _“I don’t want my daughter to die a meaningless death again.”_ But why would (Y/N) be in the Sector at all?

Then came another overlap of this thought, a wave of memories, someone who wasn’t supposed to be in the Sector. Park (Y/N). How could he forget her? He had always mocked the so-called ‘red string of fate’ until he saw it in action, and his own string led to her. But what was she doing in the Sector? However, truthfully, that wasn’t the question he should be asking himself, rather, it should be: why was she dead in this memory?

Xiaojun removed his hands from his face and stared at the array of pipes in front of him.

He could stop this.

He could definitely stop this.

He ran over to the Warden’s Office again and threw the door open, and at this second he thought to himself, should he risk telling the Warden everything? Would he even believe him? And if he did… there’s no telling how he’d react, this information was meant for Ten, after all, not him.

“Inmate 1000? Is there a problem?” The Warden looked up expectantly while he pushed aside his notebook.

“Paper.”

“Paper?” The Warden lowered his head in confusion.

“Uh, yeah,” Xiaojun shook his head slightly. That could have come out better, but he’ll have to work with what his conflicting brain sputtered out. The Warden eyed him suspiciously, but pulled out another notebook from one of the drawers. He grabbed a pen and pencil from another and handed it to Xiaojun. “That was… easy."

“Well, I let 10110 deface his cell with spray paint, I don’t see why I shouldn’t let you use paper.”

“Thanks.”

“Sure,” the Warden pulled his own notebook back towards him and returned to his work. “Lock the door on your way out, inmate.”

“Of course,” Xiaojun left the room and clicked the pen and began writing everything down, every single thought that raced across his mind, every connection he could’ve made. He moved into the mess hall and, once deeming that it was empty, took a seat and stared down at the paper.

First thing’s first, what are the major events that led the previous timeline to end up as it did? He made a comprehensive list of all the things that happened in the previous one, or at least the one’s he didn’t have any recollection of prior to the exchange in the Warden’s Office. Then he wrote down all the one’s he could’ve sworn happened in this timeline. He stared at the two lists and circled all the ones that overlapped, the things that were the same between this timeline and the last. How he was able to distinguish it, who knows, all he knows is that he has recollections of both events happening except with minor differences.

~

“Wait wait,” you held your hand up.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just processing,” you shook your head. “So you activated the paradox then?”

“Yes.”

“So you remember everything from the last timeline?”

“Yes.”

“And you,” you turned to Kun, “you just believed him?”

“Seemed pretty real to me, Xiaojun’s not the kind of person to make up something this outlandish, that’s more of a Yangyang thing.”

“Okay, one more question,” you held a finger up. “So you did all of this… for me?”

“Yeah, basically. I planned it for almost a year now, I think.”

“A year?! I’ve only known about this for three months!” Kun whipped his head to Xiaojun and he shrugs.

“I had it covered until the oxygen pipe burst in the Boiler Room,” Xiaojun grimaces.

“Excuse me?” Kun and Xiaojun fell into an argument while you and Sicheng began to look over the notebook again, landing at the page titled ‘Major Events.’ You and Sicheng shared a quick look between each other before going down the page. It was divided into two columns, one for TL8 and one for TL9, each had the event, and each had how it happened written under it, each event had only minor differences between each other, however, the main point still stood.

First was Kun killing Jongin, in TL8 it was rather… gruesome, if what you’re reading on this notes page was true. You don’t know which way you’d prefer dying, having your head bashed in on a wall or being stabbed to death. Nor could you imagine Kun doing either, but anyone can do anything if they’re really pushed to do it.

“Assuming that Jongin died before you entered… how did you know?”

“The nurses are such gossips.”

“Can we not talk about how I killed someone on my first day here? Please?” Kun glares.

“Sure thing,” Xiaojun dismisses.

“I am trying to _help_ you, Xiaojun.”

“Yeah, yeah,” and the argument continued.

The second was Yangyang stealing the locket, in TL8 it was just a simple… actually, no, not simple, it involved him “spontaneously” running into the Warden, aka it was a totally planned running into that involved the boy walking around the same block of the Sector until the Warden happened to turn a corner. In TL9 it was as simple as seeing it hanging out of the Warden’s pocket and him getting curious and pulling it out with ease. Sometimes you really wanted to applaud Yangyang’s tenacity, if he really wants something, he’ll get it.

Third, was the airlock in the Steel Room breaking, this one you found interesting, but you had vaguely recalled seeing in Xiaojun’s notes that it was him in that cell, you couldn’t help but feel somewhat concerned, you knew first hand what it was like to be trapped in a room with a broken airlock seal, and it wasn’t something you would wish upon even your most hated of enemies. The way you just feel the air get pulled out of your lungs, the way you feel your chest compress into itself, the way your vision would begin to blacken… it wasn’t a fun experience, and considering it happened twice to Xiaojun, technically, made you sympathize with the inmate. It would seem that in both timelines it is unknown what caused the break, however.

The fourth was the oxygen supply in the Sector depleting, this you heard from Ten and thus you were somewhat familiar with it. But you were somewhat shocked by the stark difference in how this event occurred in either timeline. In TL8 it happened as a result of one of the maintenance workers from the Station, actually, somehow drilling a hole into the side of the Sector, particularly right next to Guanheng’s cell.

“That doesn’t sound fun,” Sicheng clicks his tongue.

“No way.”

“Yeah, all that happened here was that Xiaojun tried to turn the temperature down in the Boiler Room but it ended up fucking the oxygen supply here,” Sicheng says. “I felt kind of bad.”

“Understandable,” you nodded your head.

The obvious thing that stood out was that all of the above Major Events have so far occurred. The next section was written in red ink, the words ‘just happened’ written next to the line that separated the two sections. Your breath hitched, the next major even was you getting trapped in the Sector, then it was the key card burning in the Boiler Room. But what made your blood run cold was the next section with the circled ‘Theoretical!’ starting it, beneath it were two possibilities, both of which were not favorable to you, and left a horrible after taste in your mouth.

“Xiaojun,” Sicheng cut into the argument. “What are the odds of this happening?” Sicheng held the notebook up, and Xiaojun knew immediately what page the other inmate was talking about.

“About one in a thousand.”

“But not zero.”

“It never is,” Xiaojun shook his head. “But I must say, the odds of Xuxi somehow mutilating his back that bad are… very low given how the Sector is structured right now,” Xiaojun shrugs.

“Don’t cross it off of the list, though,” Kun sighs. “He always has a way to surprise us.”

“As for the second point?” Sicheng raises an eyebrow.

“That depends, Sicheng,” Xiaojun shoves his hands in his pockets. “Personally, and I swear this is just personal opinion, the odds of (Y/N) breaking her arm are also low but never zero,” you held onto your arm gently.

“Just don’t go running down hallways anymore, alright?”

“Well, if anything, it’ll happen _after_ Xuxi decides to use a cheese grater on his back,” Xiaojun sighs. “Meanwhile, we’re safe.”

“But these are only theoretical, what if something else happens that also occurred in TL8?” You had to ask, you were all thinking it.

“Any other event that has happened isn’t as “major,” I don’t think,” Xiaojun hums. “Those were the ones, I think, that were most noteworthy.”

“But just in case, is there any other instance that _could_ qualify as a major event?” You flipped through the notebook pages.

“Uh… no, I don’t think so,” Xiaojun shook his head. “But if something comes up I’ll bring it up to you two.”

“So what do we do then?”

“My original plan was to bust you out as soon as possible before any other major events could take place, but the more I thought about it, the more afraid I was to try it. At best it could save you, but…” Xiaojun trailed off.

“It could just expedite my death, huh?”

“Theoretically, yeah.”

“Fair enough, that’s not a risk I’m willing to take,” you admit. “So we just have to make sure Xuxi doesn’t get hurt?”

“Again, I doubt it’d happen, but yeah,” Xiaojun nodded his head.

“You don’t happen to know how he got hurt, do you?”

“No.” Xiaojun turned to Kun and started talking more about the logistics of the plan, and you continued on with the notebook. But there was something peculiar about it, you felt like there was more to this notebook than what you were reading, something Xiaojun was keeping to himself specifically. He always knew what to say, and what to do, where to go. Sure, he had memories from TL8, but these just seem too in depth for someone who just had memories of the two. What concerned you the most was the Major Events, however. How could he be so sure with knowledge from only two timelines? It was too convenient, you thought. 

“Wait, wait, go back a page,” Sicheng spoke up. You nodded and turned the page back. The whole page was filled with sentences, but all of them were left illegible due to the multiple scribbles that crossed out each passage. You and Sicheng shared a skeptical look, and he nodded. You tore the page out as quietly as you could and pocketed it before you continued to flip through the notebook.

“Alright, so we make sure Xuxi doesn’t rip up his back, then we should be good and I can go home, right?”

“Hypothetically, there’s still a chance that either of us could die, be it because of each other or because of a freak accident,” Xiaojun nodded. 

“Okay, so we make sure that doesn’t happen, then,” you strengthened your resolve. You were going to get out of here. No matter what. “What about Ten?”

“What about him?”

“I’d like to find a way for him to get out too,” you cleared your throat.

“I don’t think there’s a way to get Ten out without getting the others out,” Xiaojun says.

“Don’t word it like that,” Kun cuts in. “What he meant was that now that Ten is actually an inmate of the Sector, you would have to find out a way to bypass all the security protocols in the Sector, which would, in turn, give the rest of us an ability to escape as well, and that’s just to get him out. What are you going to do once you’re both back in the moon station? I doubt Ten would even be able to walk in the open without getting shot. Then there’s you, (Y/N), it doesn’t matter how good-intentioned you are, you still helped an inmate escape from Sector V. And we both know how heavy of a crime that is,” Kun explains.

He had a point, you know he did, maybe this was why all the inmates respected him, he always cut into the conversation just in time to explain everything that could go wrong, but in a way that didn’t make others brush him off.

“But, there’s a problem,” Xiaojun pulls out a new, and much more familiar notebook. He opens the Warden’s Notes to a certain page and gestures for the two of you to come closer. “We need this.” He points to a picture of a silver key. You recognized that key, and that was the exact problem.

“We need to get it off of Ten then…” Sicheng said.

“Yeah, and as you can tell, Ten is very adamant on having you exit through the entrance, we tried telling him about the timeline thing, but I don’t think he buys it.”

“But shouldn’t he? He’s the Warden, he should understand the most.”

“That’s what we thought too, but when we explained it to him he was still being difficult about the whole thing,” Kun says. “He said since Xiaojun got rid of the biggest variable of the equation, all should be well,” Kun continues.

“Which is?” You pried.

“Some tapes from old interrogations that somehow made the jump from TL8, as long as those were out of the way, there shouldn’t have been a possibility of the Major Events even happening,” Xiaojun huffs.

“Is that so?” Kun asks.

“Yet the major events keep happening, so we can’t just ignore it,” Xiaojun sighs. “I’ve given up on Ten, he almost killed Kun earlier, dammit.”

“I think…” you speak up. You hesitated for a second, the moment you say what you’re thinking, that’s it. You’re in this plan all the way, all eight of you would be leaving the Sector. But that depends on whether or not the others agree to it. “I can convince Ten to join us.”

“You literally did not hear a single word we just said, did you?” Xiaojun’s jaw drops.

“Xiaojun, I grew up with him, there’s no one who knows Ten better than I do, you can trust me on this,” you affirmed. Kun shot you a concerned look.

“You know Ten that well, huh? Alright, if you say so,” Kun answers. “If you can get Ten on board, then that means we’ll be able to get the others, we’ll leave you to it, (Y/N),” Kun nods his head. Xiaojun glared at him again and Kun put his hand up to silence him.

“I can do it,” you promised him. “Now what exactly does this key do?”

“The key itself is what the Warden uses to “Turn Back Time,” as they usually put it. The Warden will use the key to unlock a cell, and that’s typically where the inmate the Council picked up will appear. For example, when the Council picked me up from my timeline, the Warden used the silver key to unlock the Steel Room and that’s where I was dropped off,” Xiaojun starts. “Now how this pertains to us… There’s a room in the Sector that’s primarily used as an emergency exit, it always moves around so I never know where it is unless I actively look for it. If we use this key on that room we can go back to our timelines before we did anything to get us convicted,” Xiaojun explains. 

“For (Y/N), this means you can go back to the Station before you stole the key, for the rest of us we’ll be taken back to the time before we committed the original crime. It’s only supposed to be for emergency purposes, as in “the moon station is about to blow up” emergency, but as far as the previous Warden wrote, there are some time things that protect us from the Council running over and picking us up again, as long as we don’t do the same thing that landed us here in the first place, we’re safe,” Kun finishes.

“That easy?”

“Well, kind of.” Xiaojun frowns. “There are bound to be some challenges to get there, but it shouldn’t be a—” he is cut off when they hear a sudden explosion outside followed by a loud shout.

“What is it now?!” 

“I’ll go check!” You ran out first, handing Xiaojun’s notebook to Sicheng before you left the med bay. 

You ran towards the commotion, and luckily, it wasn’t too far, the smell of smoke was easy to follow. As soon as you turned a corner you gasped. The entire corridor was engulfed in flames, and it was spreading quickly. You took a deep breath and ran down it, taking care not to get burned or injured. You stopped in front of the Boiler Room, and you could vaguely hear a few people arguing inside. You stared at the descending stairs and figured, fuck it, and began running down the steps. Right before you could cross the walkway, you already spotted the worst.

“Xuxi!” You ran over to him and pulled him out of the walkway and away from the majority of the flames. You shook him awake and he opened his eyes slowly, but when he noticed it was you, the widened. “What happened? What’s going on?” You hit his face softly, trying to help him gather his senses back.

“Uh… Ten and Yangyang, they got into a fight over what to do about Kun and Xiaojun,” he shook his head. 

“Where’s Hendery?!”

“Guanheng. Still over there trying to get them out,” Xuxi tries to push himself up from the metal ground. You looked down the walkway, the three voices sounding more distinct now, you debated on running in there yourself or getting one of the other three who were in the med bay, but you figured they should be coming over here soon anyway.

“Will we be able to get them out of there?”

“Who knows, it’s only a matter of time until the entire Sector burns down,” Xuxi groans. “We’re fucked, there’s no way any of us are surviving this, (Y/N), I’m so sorry,” Xuxi tries to push himself up again, but falls back harshly on the floor.

“Hey, save it,” you tried to relax him. “Xuxi, what started the fire?”

“One of them burst a pipe, behind me and—” You flipped him over immediately.

“Fuck.”

~

The door clicked shut and the three inmates stood still. Sicheng stepped forward to follow you, until a picture fluttered down from the back page of the notebook. He picks it up and turns it over, then his face fell into one of confused anger. It was his cell, certainly, but it was while you were in it, sleeping on the massive chair in the middle, with Guanheng, probably Nana actually, about to leave the room. He opened the back cover of the notebook and a plethora of other photos dropped out from it, all of them were taken in the Sector, all of them had you as the subject, and a majority of them he didn’t recognize.

“Where did you get these?” He held one of the pictures up between his index and middle finger. Xiaojun swallowed back a smart remark when he saw it. He’s been caught red-handed.

“Xiaojun,” Kun’s voice had an edge of warning to it, but Sicheng shut the notebook and slammed it onto the nurse’s desk next to him, the force of the impact causing the whole desk to shake beneath it. Xiaojun flinched slightly, but kept his face flat.

“Forget it, I have something more important to ask you,” now Sicheng was pissed. “Why didn’t you tell her the truth, Xiaojun?” He asks.

“What truth?”

“You didn’t tell her what the most important variable of the equation was…” Sicheng presses. The med bay was filled with a sudden tension, one that was overbearing, and one that muddled the three inmates’ senses. Xiaojun knew what Sicheng was going to say, and he debated on whether or not he should play dumb or not, but with Kun standing between them, he knew better than to play the victim. 

“Well, what is it, then?” Kun asked Sicheng. The other inmate looked directly at Xiaojun.

“Why didn’t you tell her that it was _you_ who killed the Warden, Dejun?”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 7.9K
> 
> Notes: Well… this was certainly a ride, isn’t it? Don’t worry, there’s still much to come. I still haven’t finished posting the Interrogation Rooms, and I’m still debating on making a Warden’s Notes for Ten, but I suppose we’ll see about that. The endings have yet to be posted, but I’m sure you guys won’t read all of those, hehe, so I’ll put my closing notes at the end of this chapter below the tag list! For now, just enjoy the chapter!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Mild Violence

“Ten! Guanheng! Yangyang!” You cupped your hands and called out to them as loud as you could.

“Leave them, there’s no way,” Xuxi rolls back over and grabs onto the metal railing to pull himself up. “We’ve gotta go, (Y/N),” Xuxi insists. You looked at him with quick disbelief, then back down the walkway. A silver key is throws from the flames and lands just a few feet away from you, and you scrambled over to grab it.

“Ten!” You did your best to shout over the flames. You held the burning key in your hands, any resulting injury being the last thing in your mind right now. You squinted your eyes and tried to look for any of the three that were on the other side. You looked down at the key, you could leave right now, and go back to before this all happened. But it felt wrong to you, for whatever reason, you would be leaving these seven to the flames while you escaped. Sure, it would just send you back in time, and they would be safe too… but what about them _right now_? At this very moment? You couldn’t leave them behind, you wouldn’t. You took a step forward and Xuxi grabbed your hand.

“Are you fucking insane?! You’ll die if you go in there!” He shouts. 

“We can’t just _leave_ them!” You tugged your hand out of his grasp. Xuxi runs a frustrated hand through his hair.

“If we go in there I can guarantee you that one of us can and _will_ die, (Y/N),” Xuxi argues. The flames part for a moment, and you were able to clearly see the scene on the other side. Yangyang was knocked out, Guanheng was trapped under a steam tank, and Ten was digging through Xiaojun’s things. 

“Ten, what are you doing?!”

“What am I doing?! What the hell are you doing?! I gave you the key! Go and get the hell out of here, (Y/N)!” Ten shouts.

“Like hell I’m leaving you!” You and Ten stared at each other, with nothing but a simple walkway and a wall of flames separating the two of you, the answer became horribly clear as to what you need to do. Xuxi was right, it would be straight up suicide to go in there and drag them out, and with him injured, he wouldn’t have been any help anyway. You held up the key again, and it was then that you realized the true meaning behind your father’s words.

“I trust you to make the right decision, (Y/N).” Ten says. He slams one of the drawers shut and throws open the closet door, pulling out a fire extinguisher. Like that would be any help. But anything is better than nothing, you supposed. “Don’t worry about us, just get the hell out of here!” Again, you looked at the key.

“Xuxi, let’s get you out of here, can you walk?”

“Yeah.”

“Then let’s go,” you both made your way out of the Boiler Room.

When you returned to the corridor, it was in an even worse state than before you entered the cell, ceiling panels were falling off, pipes have burst, and the whole area was essentially an obstacle course.

“(Y/N)! Xuxi!”

“Kun! Thank god,” the mentioned inmate runs up to the two of you. “Where are Xiaojun and Sicheng?”

“Busy looking for the emergency exit,” Kun replies. “And we’d better look for it too. Where are the others?”

“Trapped in the Boiler Room,” you frowned.

“Dammit,” Kun looked around him. “I might be able to get them out, is Ten with them?” Kun asks.

“Yeah.”

“Great, even worse, Ten has the key to the emergency exit,” Kun huffs. “Look for the emergency room too, we’re all meeting back at the mess hall after we check our side of the Sector, it’s the furthest away from the fire. The emergency exit will be completely empty except for a metal box in the middle of the room, that’s where we put the key in, as soon as you find it go to the meeting place,” Kun instructs. “Xiaojun and Sicheng have the West Wing, you and Xuxi take the East Wing. Got it?”

“Yeah,” you watch Kun run into the Boiler Room, then you and Xuxi took off down the corridor.

“Why didn’t you tell him you had the key?” Xuxi asks.

“Something told me that if I did tell him that I had it, he wouldn’t try to save the others,” you shook your head. “It’s every person for themselves right now, how’s your back? Should we get the wound dressed?”

“Eh, I’ll live long enough to make sure we at least make it— Watch out!” Xuxi shoves you forward just as the ceiling above the two of you caved in but now there was a whole wall of debris separating the two of you. You pushed yourself off of the floor and tried to look over the rubble.

“Xuxi?!” You grabbed onto a piece of metal, but immediately retracted your hand away as soon as you felt it burn your fingertips. “Ow, fuck.”

“Hey, don’t worry about me, just try to find the emergency exit, okay? I’ll try to figure a way to move all of this after I check this side of the corridor!” He shouts. “Be careful, (Y/N)!”

“I will!” There was no time to waste, you turned around and ran down the hallway. You had to remember to be careful, the next theoretical Major Event was you breaking your arm, and like hell you were going to let that happen. Now you have seven other lives waiting on you since you had the emergency key, and you’d rather live to see the next day than to die a fiery death. So with that, you threw open every door you found, or even anything that looked like it would open, you had to be thorough, you had to _live_. You continued running, and running, and running, and opening god knows how many doors, until you realized that the hallway began to get shorter, and the door at the end got closer. And you came to the end of that long path, you had to have been at the tip of the Sector and the very back end of the East Wing at this point, you assumed. You stared at the door in front of you, it was rather plain, now that you looked at it, but, nevertheless, you opened it and hoped for the best, after all, it would be _very_ hard for you to turn back with how violently the fire raged behind you. Not impossible, just horribly _difficult_.

In a panic, you ran into the room and closed the door behind you with shaking hands. When you turned around, you could only feel the relief that grew in you. In the middle of the room was a metal box with a singular keyhole in it, and the silver key in your hand suddenly got a lot heavier.

Then you heard the door lock behind you, and you turned around and ran back to it, twisting and turning the doorknob to try to open it, but the door remained stuck in place.

You turned back around to face the rest of the room, only this time, you were met with seven doors, the words of your father rang in your head:

_‘You can only save one.’_

But what happens to the others? If you chose just one, what would happen to the other inmates? The shouts of the others were long behind you, allowing you sufficient time to make your final choice. The seven different doors before you each had different words inscribed to their nameplates, words that you barely recognized, yet at the same time, they were words you felt that you knew well. Anxiety welled up inside your stomach, and then you knew you had to make a choice. You held onto your locket, your father described it as a paradox item, so it’s abilities are endless, the ‘domino’ keyword was already used, and you were well aware that there existed other keywords that could trigger other people to regain their lost memories. You looked at the doors again, now was the time you made the choice that would determine your fate.

You had a reason not to trust any of them, and yet you still had more reasons to save them. And now you could only choose one.

Part of you didn’t want to make the choice, they were all horrible people deep down in the inside, after all, they are inmates, convicted murderers, some may even be the lowest of the low, and you’d never know the full truth. Despite all of that, despite your common sense yelling how much you needed to stay away from these people, there was a screaming voice inside of you, telling you to trust a singular him. Only one of the inmates is truly trustworthy, you know. You only wished that you knew which one, though. The emergency exit would bring you back to the time before he committed the crime, all of his wrongs would be avoided through this emergency exit and, who knows, maybe a reform in personality and beliefs would soon follow. What you did know for certain was that you didn’t want any of them to die, they all have a reason to live, and you don’t want to take that from them. There was a chance of change, a hope for the better, and it was this you were rather notorious for.

A cycle of never-ending questions circled through your head. Which one of them was important to you before? And which ones were lying? More importantly, why would they lie to you? What is there to gain? And why would they lie in the first place? Words began to spiral through your already confused brain. Every second you spent in this room you felt your sanity deteriorate even further than before, as if it could get any lower than it already was. No wonder your father told you to stay away from this goddamn sector, the _shit_ this building has put you through should’ve been enough to drive you to suicide if you didn’t have a reason to stay alive.

You steadied your breathing and looked to the doors again, you already knew which door led to who.

The brown mahogany door with a large stained glass window at the front belonged to Kun. It was sturdy and reliable, just like he is, but the window is opaque, you couldn’t see through it. Just like him. There was a secret being hidden behind that door, you knew, and you weren’t quite sure if you wanted to know what was behind it. Kun was always an interesting figure to you, one that embodied ‘reasonable suspicion.’ He was always caring towards you, ever since the first day you stepped into the Sector. You didn’t know better then, you threw your complete trust into him because he just seemed like the kind of person who would handle it with care. And maybe he did, maybe it was just you who stopped trusting him. Maybe you should’ve given him a chance, he always implied that he knew what was best for you. But there was that obvious fear that there was something wrong, something he was keeping from you, and you were almost certain that you were just being paranoid. And that was the worst part. 

Next to this door was one that resembled a simple front door. It was doused in red paint, but it didn’t evoke any feelings of fear, just comfort. The feeling of being at home, of being safe, but also the feeling of being overwhelmingly sheltered. This was Xuxi’s door. An image of protection, a normal family home, but one that was just slightly overbearing. You truly didn’t know what to expect from Xuxi, there were times when he scared the hell out of you, and there were times when you’d rather stick by him to stay safe than the others. You didn’t want to say this out loud, but he’s someone you feel like you could’ve truly relied on if the circumstances were different. Maybe if you met outside the Sector, as two normal people, you could’ve hit it off. You could’ve at least have been friends. But there was this other looming feeling that hung around him, a feeling that instilled this subconscious fear in you, yet it was also paired with the craving to be with him, to be around him.

The next door was a dark brown, or more of a dark chocolate color. Intimidating to the eye, but elegant in more ways than one. This was Xiaojun’s door. Was it strange that you felt something lurking behind it? Something that shouldn’t be there? No, it’s not, this is how you’d always felt with Xiaojun, the man who held a cold exterior with an unknown motive. It was almost entrancing. Behind that door, you couldn’t tell if there was something threatening or something melancholic, but it was enough to keep you intrigued, it was enough to get you to want to know more. You thought back to that faithful encounter in the Boiler Room, that one phrase that stuck out to you was loud and clear in your head. You wanted to know more, you wanted to reassure him, you wanted to know what he had gone through, just for you. You always felt like he was hiding something, it was about high time you learned who Xiao Dejun is.

The next door was rather plain, actually, like a simple bedroom door. Save for the large padlock attached to the door handle that stopped any intruder from entering. This door belonged to Sicheng, no doubt, and when you touched the padlock, it unlocked and fell to the floor with ease. Now that, you understood clearly, was symbolic in many ways. You broke down many walls for Sicheng, you think. You unlocked many things for him, and maybe this was his way of telling you that not only has he forgiven himself, but that he’s now ready to let you back in. You don’t know who you were to him, not yet at least, but there’s something about Sicheng that made you realize that whatever you two had was important, it was something that wasn’t easy to replicate. Sicheng is, most likely, the one person you’d trust with your life at this very moment and have no fears of repercussion, he is someone who you wish you could’ve gotten to speak with more before all of this happened, he is someone who you think is a very gentle, but enigmatic person. And this door, despite its plainness, seemed to reflect that easily.

The next door was easy for you to figure out who it belonged to, it was marble with nine different colors accenting it. Guanheng had to be behind this one, you knew that as a fact, the nine colors likely represented the alters, you would assume. But these nine colors met at the very center of this extravagant door, they all met as one, and this one you assumed to be Guanheng. Since you met him, you knew there was something he kept from you, and you were certain that he informed the others not to tell you about it. Other than Hendery, you could tell that the few alters you’ve met have known you, or some other version of you, and you couldn’t help but want to know more. You wanted to know why Kunhang resented you, you wanted to know why Nana was so upset when she found out you didn’t remember her, you wanted to know why Guanheng looked so hurt to see you. Your hand traced over the gold line on the marble, it moved in a jagged pattern that almost resembled a crack in the smoothness of the door. _Kunhang_ , likely. Your mind wandered to your dreams in the regal room, and it only confirmed your theory that this door belonged to Guanheng.

The more elegant white door definitely belonged to Ten. It was pristine and perfect, without flaw. But it was this perfection that settled a strange fear in you. Its imperfections were hidden, as far as you knew, the backside of this door could be ripped and hacked at, while the presentation was unnaturally _beautiful_. There were so many things you wanted to say to him, your best friend. There were so many things you wanted to talk to him about, so many things you wanted to share with him, and yet you were faced with the horrible possibility that you wouldn’t get to see him ever again. Ten is your best friend. He is someone you could read better than yourself, someone you understood better than anyone else. And while you stared at this perfect door, you could only feel like you were put on edge. You could only feel that there was something wrong, something you needed to reach out and say aloud to him, you only want what’s best for him, you only want him to be more open with you. You were afraid of what would happen if Ten internalized everything, you were always afraid of that, because contrary to popular belief, your best friend is a very delicate man, whose emotions rule over him more often than logic does. 

Now the final door, for some reason, settled a strange fear in particular. It was unfinished. There was room for change. Yangyang. Now that you looked at it closely, it’s not that it’s unfinished, it just looked like it, actually, it looked like it had been beaten in to. The closer you got to it, the more imperfections you noticed, for example, the hinges weren’t even attached right, and there were some scratches in front of it. It was a fixer-upper, to put it bluntly. It was missing a few pieces, certainly, but that’s what you really expected from Yangyang. He needs that stability that is provided by another, Yangyang is just that kind of person. Although he could stand just easily alone, it would be better for him to have someone to share his troubles with, to share his life with. Yangyang truly scared you at first, and to be honest, he still does. But if you really worked hard at it, you were certain that you could be that positive change that he needs. Yangyang is a true enigma, you’ll never know what it is that he’s thinking of, and you’ll never know what it is that he truly wants, unless you asked him yourself, that is. He needs help, but in the form of someone he trusts, someone he can look to wholeheartedly and admit that he needs some guidance, and only then will he feel satisfied.

This was your only chance to choose. You cannot reverse your choice once it has been made. And in Sector V, time is altered in ways you would never understand, all you know is that you have all the time in the world to choose. Reality works on its own terms in this godforsaken building, and you learned long ago not to question the way its laws were bent in here.

You sat down on the chair that appeared behind you. And when you looked down you found a desk before you with a lone computer.

> **_Enter Password_ **

Your hands moved themselves, they entered your full name.

> **_Access Granted_ **
> 
> **_Would you like to see your progress until now?_ **

You looked at the taunting ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ options. Were you even in the right state of mind to choose this?

Fuck it.

> **_Now pulling up files_ **

Seven files appeared before you, each with your name on it, but each with different time stamps. You moved the cursor to hover over each option, what would these files detail? But what put you off was the dates. They were all the _same_. The eleventh of January 2019. What were you even doing that day? You don’t remember. What day was it today? You clicked on the first file, **[9:08 pm]** , and a video opened.

~

The cuckoo clock ticked mockingly, you were stuck at home with a horrible cold, probably your fault to be honest, and you were dreading it. You turned over and stared at your cozy home, the one-room cottage of a house was actually a lot spacier than you thought when you originally bought the home, and you couldn’t ask for a better place to be making your best of memories. Your boyfriend, luckily, was a very clean person too, dishes were always done, floors were always swept, you never felt like you were trapped or suffocating, and for that you were thankful… if only he were here right now, however. But he was busy, he had his own job to do in the city, and you were here, at least an hour away from him.

“(Y/N)?” Kun walked into the room, kicking the door shut gently behind him. Speak of the devil.

“Kun,” you had a warm smile on your face. Kun pulled out a can from his bag and poured it into a bowl. You watched him move around the small kitchen, moving with light steps so as not to irritate you in any way. He placed the bowl in the microwave and sighed softly, running a tired hand through his hair. He stopped the timer before it could go off and moved to the chair next to you, placing the tray he brought with him on your nightstand. You were a bit embarrassed, to be honest, he was always working hard, and here comes his sick and lazing girlfriend. “You didn’t have to come, you know, you must be so busy.”

“And leave my girlfriend sick in our home? Nice try, (Y/N),” he laughs sweetly and takes your temperature again. “Geez, you’re burning up.”

“I know,” you frowned. “Maybe we shouldn’t run in the rain next time,” you giggled. Kun looked at you with a slight smile and took the bowl from the tray.

“You should eat this while it’s warm,” he takes a spoonful and holds it near your mouth. You looked at him with slight annoyance. “How often do I get to take care of my girlfriend? Come on, entertain me at least.”

“Fine,” you rolled your eyes and let him feed you. “Hey, this is really good!”

“It’s just chicken noodle, (Y/N),” he looked away with a slight blush on his face. “I got you some medicine too, just over-the-counter cold medication, so you don’t have to worry.”

“God, what did I do to deserve you?”

“What’s there to say? You decided to love me, and I decided to love you too, and now here we are, together at last.”

~

You stopped the video prematurely. There were a good two hours left, but you couldn’t bring yourself to watch it.

This caring nature of his, it had to be a facade, you originally told yourself, but as you scrubbed through the video that image deteriorated. He cared, he really did. And it was sweet in a bit of an addicting way, the kind of sweet that everyone wished they had in their relationships, the kind of sweet you would imagine your fairy tale prince to be. Was this really you? She looked just like you, sounded just like you, and acted just like you. But you couldn’t remember a single thing from this video, you didn’t recognize this scene at all, actually.

You clicked the next file, timestamped **[7:17 pm]**.

~

“Ow,” you tried to shake the sharp pain away from your hand.

“Hey, what happened?” Xuxi walked into the kitchen and saw your bleeding hand. “There you go again,” he laughs.

You ran your hand through the water and looked up at the setting sun, you watched your golden retriever run around the backyard, no doubt getting even muddier than the night before which would lead to yet another eventful bath time for the adorable, but oh so energetic, doggo. He is so lucky to have parents who love him to death, otherwise, you’d just spray the hose on his paws and call it a day.

“I’m not disastrous, I swear.” You laughed and turned the water off.

“Uh-huh, so how did you knick your finger?” He dampens a paper towel and dabs the remaining blood off of your finger. 

“You know, I can do this myself,” you teased.

“Come on, let me take care of you,” he removes the towel and opens the medicine cabinet that was behind him, pulling out the anti-bacterial cream and a small bandaid then handing it to you. “What were you making?”

“Don’t laugh.”

“Okay.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

“Mac and Cheese.”

“Oh,” Xuxi pressed his lips together in a tight smile. “Why were you… why were you using a knife?”

“I couldn’t open the box…” You nudged your head towards the cardboard container that was still on the table. Xuxi took the box and flipped it over, pointing to where the box was supposed to be opened. “I _definitely_ knew that was there.” This time, Xuxi couldn’t stop the huge grin that broke out, which naturally fell into laughter, but really you couldn’t help but laugh too.

“Hey! I said not to laugh!”

“God, you’re so cute,” he took the bag of macaroni out of the box and handed it to you. “This better be delicious mac and cheese considering you accidentally cut yourself for it.”

“Oh you best _believe_ it’ll be the best damn mac and cheese you’ve ever had,” you opened the bag and poured it into the pot and turned on the heat, waiting for the water to boil.

“Hey,” his voice was quiet, barely beyond a whisper. It was one of those voices that you knew held a thousand words, but was only able to say fewer than a handful.

“Hmm?”

“I love you.”

~

You paused the video. There’s something in his eyes, some feeling that you can’t describe. The closest you could get to is pure admiration, the same look you would give someone who just told you the greatest news of your life. You rested your elbows on the desk and your head in your palms, just staring at the screen. Where did this boy go? The one filled with pure intentions, no envy, just love. And can you still find him? But, your mind wandered back, and you couldn’t help but laugh. _Black hair_. So that’s his natural hair color, hmm? It suited him well, he was handsome, and very different to how you see him now.

You clicked on the next video, timestamped at **[7:18 am]**.

~

“Hey,” you walked into the bedroom and sat on the bed, watching Xiaojun fix his tie for the thousandth time. The penthouse was a mess, suits were hung around any part of the room they could’ve been hung on, ties were tossed on the floor once Xiaojun deemed them unfit for the occasion, and the curtains were half open half closed, if that made any sense. You listened to the clicking of the Newton’s Cradle, and you couldn’t help but feel like it made Xiaojun more anxious. “We’re going to be late if you keep redoing your tie, you know.”

“I know, can you tell I’m nervous?” He looked at you from the mirror. His eyebrows were scrunched together and his jaw was clenched.

“Yeah.” You nodded slightly.

“God…” he sighs and massages his temples.

“Jun, you’re going to be okay,” you stood up from the bed and wrapped your arms around him, resting your face on the back of his pressed suit. He laced one of his hands with yours. “I’ve seen you pull of so many feats with every odd stacked against you. For once you have all the cards in your favor, you can do this,” you pulled away and moved in front of him. You redid his tie for the last time.

“He’s my father.”

“Exactly, and he wants to reconnect with you,” you smoothened out his dress shirt. “Jun he’s not going to judge you based off of how well you look, in fact, I’m sure that he’s not even going to judge you at all. He just wants to reconnect with his estranged son.”

“Took him twenty years to do it.”

“Maybe he’s in a better state now,” you reasoned.

“I just wish that he took the normal way and went straight to me instead of using you,” he grumbled. You pressed your lips together and looked up at him.

“You’re not an easy person to get to, I should know, I was your secretary.”

“I just don’t want to mess up.”

“What is there to mess up? Just be yourself, my love, and everything will go fine.” You chuckled and smoothened out his hair. He looked at you with his lips slightly parted, he was in awe. “Why are you looking at me like that, my love?”

“You have no idea how much I love you.”

~

Xiaojun, you had initially thought of him as cold, but you learned very quickly that it was the opposite. You knew deep in there was someone who just needed a small push of validation, he just needed the stability he had lacked for so long. You wondered how much he has gone through since entering the Sector, having memories of two timelines certainly couldn’t have been easy, and you genuinely sympathized for him. But you could tell that there was a huge secret that he was keeping from you, and maybe if you chose his door, and remembered everything there is to remember about him, maybe then he would entrust you with that secret.

You clicked the next file, timestamped at **[1:06 am]**.

~

“Sicheng!” You shrieked his name when he threw you in the air. But, just like he had promised, he caught you in his arms and rubbed his face against yours.

“Relax, didn’t I say I’d always be here to catch you?” You clung onto him, slightly afraid that he’d throw you in the air again. You knew he’d catch you, it’s just that it was so windy right now that you had this strange irrational fear that it would blow you away. Don’t ask. But you had to admit, there was something wonderful about the full moon in the sky, and there was something that was a tad bit magical about it whenever you were suspended in the air for even a few seconds.

“I know, but it’s still kind of scary,” you looked down at his face and he had an innocent smile on.

“You don’t have to be afraid with me,” he holds you a bit tighter and places you on the ground. “Plus, you’re so cute, I couldn’t resist.”

“Cute, huh?” You pout.

“Kind of hard to call you sexy when you pout like that, (Y/N).”

“That’s not what I meant!”

“I know, I know,” he spun you into his arms again and you stayed there, clinging on to his jacket, you tugged on it slightly. “Cold?”

“Yeah…”

“Here,” he shrugged it off and placed it over your shoulders. “Hey, you look better in that than I do,” he dusted off the shoulders while you fought back a smile.

“Thanks,” you mumbled, letting him pull you back into his arms. The wind blew gently over the hill the two of you were on, the motorcycle behind you providing very little light compared to the moon above you, it was all, to put it in a cheesy word, magical. You didn’t want to give this up for the world, the sheer purity of this moment, the romantic undertones at this place, they were all perfect for you. The things this hill has seen, from the beginning of your friendship, to the start of your relationship, it was a very special place for you and him, and never has it gotten boring, and never has it gotten plain. It was a place the two of you cherished, and it was a place you’d continue to go to for years to come, certainly.

“(Y/N),” Sicheng rested his chin on top of your head and held you to his chest.

“Sicheng,” you replied softly.

“I love you so much.”

~

For once, you let the video end on its own. Your tired eyes stared at the replay button, maybe there was something you missed? You clicked on it and watched the events play out. So far, across these files, you saw yourself with these boys but for some reason you couldn’t remember any of these. Did they actually happen? Is what you’re seeing real? Should you be afraid? Sicheng is someone you trust, someone who also happened to be death afraid of you when you initially met, but watching this scene, you couldn’t help but feel horrible. What happened to you two that made him react that way when he saw you? The kind of love you are seeing now, from this same video you’ve repeated twice now, was one that was unique, and one that could not be replicated, it was one that always seemed to be comforting.

You clicked the next file, timestamped at **[3:45 pm]**.

~

“Well, won’t you look at this?” Ten stood over you, a mischievous smile playing on his features. See, while you were trying to reach for a book on the shelf next to your bed, you slipped and ended up somehow wedging yourself between the mattress and the bed frame and, for whatever reason, you couldn’t pull yourself out. You looked out the window, getting ready to yell at Ten to beg him to move away from the ocean because goodness gracious you might actually strangle someone if you had to hear one more ship horn at 6 am in the morning, but then again he’d just remind you that this was the cheapest place he could get that was the closest to your university. After five minutes of calling for Ten at the top of your lungs, and you were sure he heard you he just wanted to be a little shit, he finally showed up.

“Stop laughing and help me up, you jerk,” you reached your arms up and Ten grabbed on to them, pulling you up from where you had fallen.

“How do you get stuck between the bed and the bed frame in the first place?”

“It’s kind of embarrassing, please don’t ask,” you grimaced.

“Embarrassing? Can’t be as bad as having a klutz like you as a girlfriend.”

“I can break up with you _right now_.”

“But you won’t.”

“Prove it.”

“Come on, you love me,” he pushed you back down on the bed and stretched himself across you, effectively trapping you beneath him.

“You’re heavy,” you whined. “But yeah, I guess I love you,” you ran your hands through his hair and he nuzzled himself into your chest.

“You’re my favorite pillow,” he yawns. “And girlfriend, I guess.”

“Ugh, you are so lucky I’m madly in love with you.”

“Madly?” He pushed himself off of you. “I guess that makes me obsessed with you then.”

“Oh god, I take it back, that was so cheesy, Ten!” You laughed. His expression softened and he laid down next to you, pulling you into his arms.

“But seriously, I love you.”

~

Again you stopped the video, and you looked at the date again. Still the eleventh of January, just like every other day before it. You forwarded through the video, taking in the strange intimacy you had with him, your best friend. It felt foreign, but at the same time so familiar. If you looked closely enough, you could see the broken boy behind him. You wondered if you could’ve been a better friend if you just reached in further to drag that boy out. Ten had given up so much for you, at least in this timeline you knew that for sure, and you wanted to get to know the original Ten, the one that existed prior to when your father sent him back in time. Maybe that would be the key to helping him?

You clicked the next file, timestamped at **[10:51 pm]**.

~

You hummed to yourself while you gazed out the balcony in your room. Tonight’s stars seemed extra beautiful tonight, and you didn’t want them to go away. The room behind you was quiet, but you marveled at the way the moonlight reflected off of the gold accents in the room. Your fiancé was working a late-night it would seem, which has become rather common for the young royal, but you couldn’t help but laugh quietly, surely by now Juni must have taken over, Guanheng was never one for burning the night oil.

“There you are,” Guanheng enters the balcony. “What’s so funny?” He asks.

“Sorry, I was half expecting Juni to come see me tonight.”

“Wha…? Look, I hate late nights, but I can still do it,” he laughs. He stands next to you and leans on the balcony, looking out at the kingdom before him. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” You looked out at the sight as well.

“Yeah, I can’t stop looking at it,” you sighed. “How did the meeting go?”

“You know the elders, they’re old fashioned,” Guanheng shakes his head. “It doesn’t matter, what matters is right now, at this very moment,” he says. He hands you a pair of binoculars.

“What are these for?”

“Just… try them out,” Guanheng offers. You look at him with your signature suspicious glance, but held the binoculars up to your face anyway, staring at the mountains just beyond the Kingdom’s border. “I’m going to turn you, alright? Don’t be afraid.”

“I never am with you, Guanheng,” you reminded him gently.

“I know,” he says with a light tone. You feel his hands on your shoulders, and he turns you slowly. The scenery you saw through the binoculars changed rapidly, switching between grassy hills and stone buildings every few seconds, then, you stopped. And you focused on the sight before you. It was a monument of the previous King and Queen, gilded to remind the people of their glory, but draped in common garbs to remind the people of their humility. You had always looked up to the King and Queen in a way that competed with your relationship with your own parents, you were always close to the royal family since you and Guanheng were children.

“What’s this?”

“What has been, and what could’ve been,” he answers. “But now… I see it more as a ‘what can be,’” he removes his hands from your shoulders and you place the binoculars down.

“Can I tell you the truth, (Y/N)?”

“Of course, Guanheng, I will always listen to you.”

“I didn’t meet with the elders to ask them about the whole… ya know…”

“Mmhmm,” you didn’t have to press him, you knew he was talking about the war.

“I asked them if it would be wise to…” his voice trails off.

“To what?”

“You know what? Forget it, it’s not that important,” Guanheng shakes his head. “But I do have something else that is just as important to tell you, (Y/N).”

“And that is…?” You rested your head on his shoulder now.

"From beginning to the end, I’ll love you for twice that time,” he confesses. “But you already knew that, didn’t you?”

“Of course I did, and I hope you know that I love you just as much, and I mean I love _all_ of you,” you assured him. Guanheng wrapped an arm around your waist and pulled you closer to him.

“Thank you.”

~

Guanheng.

Always the interesting person, and one that you wanted to speak with more, but oftentimes it was Hendery you had the pleasure of speaking to. Hendery was one of those people who you truly wished that you could understand, and maybe at one point you did. Maybe at one point you were the one person who stood with him against a sea of prejudice, maybe at one point you were the person who stayed by his side. And maybe that’s why Kunhang resented you. You must’ve done something to him that damaged him in ways that you would never be able to understand, and maybe he would never understand either. But it was all the more reason to want to console him and remind him that he should never feel alone.

You clicked the next file, timestamped at **[12:38 am]**.

~

You knocked on the apartment door softly, you knew it was counterproductive, but part of you didn’t want to bother your best friend, and the other part of you didn’t want to hear him say ‘I told you so’ to your face. But in truth, you really needed him right now, you really wanted him to tell you that everything was going to be all right, because at this moment, it felt like everything has come crashing down on you, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.

To your surprise, the door opened.

“(Y/N)?” Yangyang looked surprised. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s over…” was all you were able to say, you were afraid that you were going to burst into tears if you spoke any longer. Yangyang looked behind you before letting you in.

You sat on the couch, looking around at the dull apartment that surrounded you. Yangyang disappeared for a moment, but came back with a blanket, a DVD, and a tub of ice cream.

“You know, I’m not the best when it comes to relationships, but I think I know my best friend enough to know what will make her feel better,” he smiles.

“That better be the full collection of the Bachelor in your hands, Liu,” you sniffled.

“Even better,” he shows you the cover. “It’s the special collectors edition.”

“Ugh, I fucking love you. Put that shit on.”

“Hell yeah,” Yangyang wrapped the blanket around you and pushed the DVD in. He grabbed the remote and sat next to you, easily draping his legs over your own just as he did for years. He sighs and plays the first episode. “You know, (Y/N), I don’t want to rush things, especially since… you know.”

“Yeah. I do.”

“Look, (Y/N), are you sure that the relationship only ended _today_?” There were very few times when your best friend was serious, and you knew that when he was you had to listen.

“Now that I think back to it… I think it ended months ago, but I was too afraid to leave, I didn’t think I had anywhere to turn to,” you sighed. Yangyang put his hand over his heart.

“I am… hurt.”

“Noooo, I didn’t mean it like that,” you cried softly. “I just… I didn’t want to seem like a bother to you, Yangyang.”

“(L/N) (Y/N) I have done literally everything with you, half of those things should’ve landed us in _jail_.”

“You mean like the time we impulse stole a car?”

“Yes. If you think I wouldn’t let you move in after your shitty boyfriend technically broke up with you but not really because he manipulated you into staying in an unhealthy relationship where he just used you and toyed with your feelings to get you wholly emotionally dependent of him and just drop you once he was bored with you then you are wrong. I would literally take a bullet for you.”

“That was… oddly specific,” you chuckled. “But very much appreciated.”

“(Y/N),” Yangyang paused the Bachelor. “I have to tell you something important, and I’m only saying this because I know if I wait longer, I’m only going to chicken out again.”

“Go ahead, Yangyang.”

“I love you,” he says. You looked at him, you were trying to process what he just said to you.

“What?” You genuinely just wanted to hear him say it again.

“I love you, my other half and my partner in crime,” he sounded much more confident that time around.

~

The video ended, and you were left to stare at the screen. He was… very different compared to the Yangyang you currently knew. What happened to cause his personality to shift so drastically? Is it fixable? You would only find out if you chose him, but there were so many variables to consider. Yangyang is probably one of the most complex people you had ever had the chance of meeting in the Sector, you couldn’t tell if he loved or hated you, but at the same time you knew he had your back, like when the key card was destroyed, he kept Xiaojun off your back. Like Xuxi, you felt like if the circumstances were different, you would’ve gotten along well with Yangyang.

You were tempted to watch these videos again, they were so little to go off of, but even so, they were so much. They must have meant so much, to you, to _him_. Whoever it was in those videos, whoever it was that you had decided to spill your heart to.

You couldn’t imagine the pain _he_ went through when you didn’t remember _him_. The thoughts that must have raced through _his_ head when he found out that you didn’t know _him_ at all. What a curse it must’ve been, to see the face of someone you loved so deeply, not recognize you at all. You felt a sudden sympathy for them. What were you like in those last timelines? What was your relationship like? These are all things that plagued you, ideas you so deeply wanted to unlock, memories you wanted to recall.

But at the same time, you were oh so _afraid_.

You weren’t afraid of the memories from timelines before, no, in fact, you were just curious to know them. You were afraid to see what _he_ has become. You were afraid to see the drastic changes in _his_ personality, you were afraid to see the monster that resulted from whatever you had done to them in their timeline. You were the common variable, after all, this had to have been your fault somehow, and you wanted so desperately to fix it.

It’s not too late to change things, is it?

You held your locket in your hand. A paradox item, is how Xiaojun explained it. Say a certain word, and it will restore your memories of the timeline it is associated with. You looked to the door, and the strange nameplates began to make more sense. The words that had no rhyme or reason to them, they now had purpose. There was a delicate truth to them, and a robust story behind them. These words all meant something to you in the past, and the moment you say them, the door will unlock, and you will have made your choice.

The only question now is…

_Which one are you willing to save?_

**Rolex**

**Retriever**

**Newton**

**Ironwood**

**Ginseng**

**Lucifer**

**Ipomea**

~

**  
_Closing Remarks_  
**

OHHHH MY GODDDD IT’S FINISHED AFTER A WHOPPING ~55,000 WORDS WOOHOOO (but not really, Endings have yet to come out lmao, but I’ll stagger those nicely after I’ve proofread them and made sure that they’re sill consistent with the main story). You guys, Ima be real, this was the wildest adventure I’ve been on so far on this site, and I couldn’t have asked for better people to spend it with. I’ll always miss getting those asks sharing theories about who’s who or what’s going to happen next, I’ll always miss the supportive comments under the chapters, but I know that this isn’t the end, we’ll all still talk to each other and have fun, and I know for certain that you will all stick around for my next big series, which should happen after I finish TSTL and I think it’s been like two months since ATGoF was updated WHOOPS.

But either way, thank you all for sticking by me with this series. It was a huge gamble on my end for obvious reasons, and although they’ve finally fallen silent after Ch. 5(?), the amount of anon hate I received for this series was ridiculous and I am 99% sure they were all from the same person 🙄 Either way, I am so happy to have experienced all of this ~~comment blueberry if you read this far~~ with such a supportive following for this series.

Again, this is not the end, just in case you didn’t read the notes at the beginning. I’ve still got some Interrogation Rooms to write, and of course the Endings lol. But I must say, I’m curious, which endings are you all looking forward to? I hope I answered all of your questions, but I must allude to something...

Every ending is different, they will answer different questions. There are some endings where (Y/N) may be left in blissful ignorance, and there are some where she will learn the harsh truth. But that’s just the reality of life, you don’t always get a fully satisfying ending, so although the differences won’t be too drastic... certain endings will answer certain questions, and certain endings might not. No promises though, these are all theoretical.

Again... thank you for joining me on this ride!

And thank you for enjoying this series.

This was this fic’s author Crys, and thank you so much for enjoying and contributing to the creation of Zemblanity.

Love,   
Crys


	11. Rolex [Kun Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 8.4K
> 
> Notes: Alright, so our first ending is Kun! I hope you guys enjoy this one, Kun’s ending is… for some reason, one of my favorites, ahaha. But I see most of you are looking forward to Ten’s, so maybe I’ll consider posting his earlier than I anticipated, but we’ll see, depends on if I’m feeling nice or not hehe. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy! Again, I’m so glad to have had all of you a part of this ride!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Guns, Gun Violence, Murder

Kun’s eyes shot open when he heard you knocking on his apartment door. He rubbed them gently and looked at the mess of a desk that was in front of him and sighed. He looked up at his laptop screen, that same strange email taunting him. It held no official correspondence, so he considered reporting it in as a scam email, but considering how it was worded, and how detailed it was, there was no way it wasn’t meant for him. All he wondered was who sent the damn thing, but when he heard you knock at the door again, he shut his laptop and decided that it would’ve been a matter he’d have to deal with later. He gathered all of the loose papers together and pushed them aside before walking over to the door and opening it. As soon as he saw your smiling face he felt ten times better than before. That was just the effect you had on him, and it was always comforting to know that you would always be the one constant in his life.

“Hey, (Y/N), how was the drive here?” He stepped aside and let you in. He took your bag from your hands and placed it on the couch for the time being. The man had miraculously convinced you to come over for the weekend, and he was a bit more excited than he originally anticipated, but could you blame him? Long-distance wasn’t exactly the best thing. Truth be told, you were both originally living together already in a much smaller town a good hour away, but when times got hard he quickly found out that he couldn’t just work temp jobs for the rest of his life, and he definitely wasn’t going to just rely on your income either, he wanted to be of some help somehow. Unfortunately, the closest stable job, with a decent enough pay, was, you guessed it, an hour away. He was very surprised to see how supportive you were of it, however, on his first day you assured him that you would be just fine on your own. The commute wasn’t so horrible, until his supervisor started making him take more and more late nights, and soon they became too much of a hassle, until finally, he decided he had to look into a closer living option for the sake of his sanity. Again, he was surprised at your supportiveness, you were always on his side, trusted him more than he even trusted himself at times, and for that he would always be glad.

“Kun? Are you listening?” You asked him.

“Hmm? Yeah, of course,” he drags a tired hand down his face and you frowned. You stopped in front of him and nodded slightly. You framed his face with your hands, and he leaned into your touch just enough for you to know that he needed it.

“You look so tired, love,” you rubbed his dark circles with your thumb. “Can’t you take a break? Just for an hour? You look like you need it, Kun.”

“You know what?” He looks over to his desk. “I’d like that a lot, actually,” he sighs. You took his hand and pulled him over to the couch and moved your things out of the way. Kun was honestly surprised at how quickly he relaxed with you, he had to be careful, he could fall asleep at any moment in your arms. Then again, that wouldn’t exactly be a bad thing, now would it? You ran your fingers through his hair slowly.

“Ah… I’m glad I came over, I miss you a lot these days,” you said. “You’re not too stressed out, are you? I’ll try to help you in any way I can, love,” you assured him.

“(Y/N),” he yawned. “Just having you here with me is more than enough, actually… I feel less stressed already.”

“That’s good, we’re still on for Sunday though, right?” You asked him.

“Mmhmm,” Kun nodded lazily. He had almost forgotten that he promised to go with you to say hello to your parents that day, they were rather nearby to where he worked, and they had caught wind of you being in the city for the weekend and they were _very_ adamant on seeing the two of you. It’s not that Kun didn’t like your parents, in fact, he got along rather famously with them, and on your parents’ side they couldn’t have asked for a better person to date their daughter, it’s just that they’ve been rather pushy for a certain… _topic_ , that you and Kun had decided was just too risky given both of your financial situations at the moment.

Plus, as far as Kun could tell, you’ve been rather distant about the topic. Again, not that you weren’t interested in it at all, it’s just that it would just prove to be an irresponsible move at the moment. Both of you were essentially just getting by, not to mention the loans you were both paying off, marriage was just something that was out of the question right now. It’s just frustrating to have to smile and nod while both his and your parents hinted to the idea of it, and both of you were too afraid to explain why it just wasn’t an option at the moment.

“I’m so glad that you’re not upset about it,” you mumbled. “I know they can be very impatient, I don’t want to stress you out any more than you already are, Kun. You should just focus on yourself, alright?”

“It’s fine,” Kun laughs. “They’re your parents, it’s only natural for them to want you to settle down, right? I don’t blame them. Plus, you know my parents are the same way,” he jokes.

“What’s with parents and getting married anyway? As long as I know that you love me, and as long as you know that I love you, isn’t that all we need?”

“Mmhmm,” Kun hums. He was already starting to doze off when he noticed you were sleeping yourself. He looked up at your peaceful state, come to think about it, you were saying something about how tiring the bus ride to the city was, something about a small child who kept crying constantly next to you. Again, Kun sighed and stood up, placing a pillow below your head slowly and tucking you in with a blanket. He picked up his glasses from the coffee table and went straight back to work, he only had a few hours left to do it anyway.

His phone went off louder than he remembered setting it, and you jolted awake at the sudden noise.

“Sorry, sorry,” Kun rushed over to the coffee table and answered it, recognizing the ringtone immediately. “Mr. Kim,” he addresses curtly. You folded the blanket neatly while you listened to Kun’s conversation and you feared the worst when his expression dropped.

“You need me to come in on Sunday, sir?” He glanced over at you. “I had plans that day,” he sighs.

“It’s okay,” you cupped your hands and whispered loudly. Kun looks at you again and you nodded again for affirmation.

“I’ll be in on Sunday then. Do I have to get all of those files finished by then also?” Kun waits for a response. You already knew what the answer was when Kun started to rub the bridge of his nose, and you started to feel an ounce of regret for letting Kun take this job, if you knew it was going to do this to him then you would’ve tried harder to talk him out of it. It’s just that he looked so happy to be offered the job, he had always wanted to get a foothold in this industry, but it would seem that it’s taking much more of a toll than he originally thought. Kun put his phone down after his supervisor hung up and he sat back down on the couch.

“A lot of it is organizing, right? I can help you with that, just tell me where everything goes and I’ll figure it out from there,” you tucked your legs into your chest. Kun looked surprised.

“Are you sure? Aren’t you mad that we won’t be able to visit your parents?”

“No way, are you kidding me? I’m just glad that we get to avoid the ‘Here’s Why You Should Quit Your Job And Marry Kun’ lecture. And I’m sure you’re glad to avoid the ‘Here’s Why You Should Settle Down, Marry (Y/N), And Plan For A Family’ lecture.”

“You’ve got a good point there,” Kun laughs. He sinks into the couch and closes his eyes. “I need to get so much work done by Sunday… I think I’m going to lose my mind,” Kun grumbles.

“We should make it into a bonding experience then!” You offered. “We don’t see each other as much as before, so we should make the most of the time we have together, right? What’s the first thing we have to do?”

“But you must be tired, you woke up so early to catch the bus and everything,” Kun reasons. You were telling him a few days ago that the bus route you’d have to take not only had too many stops, but the stop closest to his apartment was also the last on the list. Sure, by car the drive is only an hour long, but once he estimated the bus’ route, that one hour turned into nearly five.

“So? That’s nothing compared to you having to deal with your unreasonable supervisor, Kun, the worst I have are my gossiping coworkers,” you tried your best to lighten the mood, he could tell. But you’d have to be ridiculous to think that you could hide your disappointment from him, you had both been dating for so long already, after all.

“Alright then, why don’t we take a walk to my office building then?” He plays along with your antics, as usual. “It’s actually quite a nice evening.”

“I would like that very much,” you smiled. “Plus, we can grab a coffee on the way, my treat!”

“What? No way, I’m paying.”

“Hmmm, why don’t we figure that out when we get there?” You stood up and grabbed both of your coats off of the coat rack. “Plus, you look like you could use some fresh air.”

In the end, you ended up paying for drinks, as in you somehow pushed your card into the reader before he could, and you both enjoyed a nice leisurely walk to the office building. Kun had memorized that route like the back of his hand, at this point. But every so now and then when he’d turn to you to make sure you were alright, he was always surprised by how hard you tried to take in the big city. It was, no doubt, very different from the small town you both had been living in before, but he was always impressed by how hard you worked so that you wouldn’t worry him, but in some ways that just worried him even more. He’d rather hear you complain about your troubles than to internalize them.

“You can just wait here in the lobby, they don’t allow people without badges up where I work,” he says. “Don’t go wandering off, alright?”

“Mmhmm, I’ll just look around the lobby while I wait for you,” you sat down on one of the couches. “Take your time.”

“Alright,” Kun waved at you before entering the elevator.

So maybe his weekend plans weren’t going as… _planned_. But he’d certainly have to make it up to you as soon as he finishes these damn papers that his supervisor was so adamant on him doing. The elevator doors opened and Kun walked into the empty office. He made a straight beeline for his desk and saw the large stack of papers piled on top of it. 

“I’d better get overtime for this,” Kun shakes his head and balances the stack on his hands and re-enters the elevator. He left the elevator just in time to see you stuck in a conversation with his supervisor.

Wait.

Hold on a second.

Kun walked up to the two slowly, wanting to know what was going on.

“I appreciate the offer, but I’m in a committed relationship, so I’ll have to decline—” Of course, you were being polite as usual, it was one of your charming points, sure, that’s fine in a small town, but things, people, are different in the city.

“Ah, how silly of me, I should’ve introduced myself first. Kim Jongin, and you are…?” Jongin took your hand and pressed a chaste kiss to it, and you quickly pulled your hand out of his grasp.

“No one important to you, surely,” you scoffed. “Now if you would leave me _alone_ , I would greatly appreciate that, Mr. Kim,” you clenched your jaw. Now that he had introduced himself, Kun was sure, you knew exactly who this man was. And he could see you holding back, knowing you, you were probably avoiding an altercation that would lead to his dismissal from the company.

“Oh, come on now, I’m sure your boyfriend wouldn’t mind if I took you out to drinks—”

“Actually, I would mind,” Kun interrupted the conversation. Jongin looked between the two of you and cleared his throat.

“In that case, I’ll take my leave then,” he walked between the two of you, but not before coincidentally bumping into Kun’s shoulder, sending the already loosely bound papers flying all over the lobby.

“Well, he was a real gentleman, now wasn’t he?” You glared at him as he entered the elevator. But you quickly bent down and helped Kun pick up all of the papers.

Kun couldn’t help but think back to that strange email he received, now that he thought about it, it was rather… eerie. It had said to bring (Y/N) to the office, specified it actually. But the email was encrypted, and he knew for certain that it wasn’t Jongin who sent it. But there was another part of that email that Kun couldn’t help but shudder at…

‘Make sure you keep your door locked tonight.’

Kun shook the thought out of his head.

“Certainly an interesting kind of fellow,” Kun rolls his eyes. He holds his hand out. “I can take the rest of that stack.” You looked down at the neat bundle of papers in your arms, then you looked at his hand. With that same cheeky grin he fell in love with, you laced your hand in his and pulled him out back into the street with you.

“Ah, the sun went down while we were in there! That’s alright, the sky looks so pretty tonight, don’t you think, Kun?”

~

You stepped out of the door and into the med bay. And it was nothing like how you left it. Cabinets were overturned, syringes and scalpels stuck out of the walls, there were spilled medications, pills and liquids alike, scattered throughout the floor, and the beds that were so neatly aligned had become overturned.

“Huh…? Why don’t I feel any different?” You wondered aloud. It’s true. You didn’t have any more memories than when you started here, and as far as you knew, there weren’t any missing. You were just… _you_.

“(Y/N)?” Kun’s voice was clear, but strained. You ran over to him, he was behind one of the overturned beds, and you felt your heart stop.

“Oh my god, Kun! What happened to you?!” You ran over to one of the knocked over cabinets and rummaged through it, looking for anything that would stop the bleeding.

“I don’t think you’d like it if I told you,” Kun groans. 

“Kun, please, now isn’t the time to be keeping secrets!” You shout. You must have struck a chord in him, because you saw the way his expression changed in that quick instant. He looked away from you for only a few moments more before he took in a deep breath. “Sicheng and Xiaojun weren’t looking for the emergency exit,” his voice was quiet.

“Huh?” You stopped digging through the mess of a cabinet.

“Xiaojun…” Kun pinched the bridge of his nose. “He only did it because he wanted to stop the Major Events from happening, (Y/N), you have to understand.” 

“What did Xiaojun do, Kun?” You looked over to him. You’ve known long enough now that Xiaojun had this year-long plan that circulated around you not entering the sector, and when that backfired, he made it his own personal goal to get you out without causing any more Major Events.

“When Sicheng found out why Xiaojun didn’t tell you, he didn’t take to it kindly,” Kun shakes his head. “I left before things got worse, and that’s when I ran into you and Xuxi, but as soon as Sicheng found me… it wasn’t good, as you can tell,” Kun laughs sadly. You pulled out a roll of gauze and bandages.

“Oh my god, okay, I can do this, oh my god…” you knelt next to him and took in a deep breath. There was just so much blood, you were surprised that you didn’t notice the heavy stench of iron when you had initially walked in.

“(Y/N), breathe, it’s okay,” Kun’s voice was remarkably steady, with his free hand, he took the cloth from you and cleaned off the excess blood from his chest. “I’m going to take my hand off now, don’t rush, I’ll hold the bandage in place while you wrap the gauze, okay?”

“Mmhmm,” you nodded your head. “Kun, what did Xiaojun do? I need to know.” Kun took the padding from you and placed it on top of the stab wound on his chest. You wrapped the gauze around him carefully. Kun glanced behind him.

“Did you see Xiaojun on your way here?”

“No…” you answered him quietly and you finished rolling the gauze around him and pinned it carefully so it would stay in place.

“(Y/N),” Kun took a hold of your wrist and held it firmly. “Promise me you won’t freak out. I need you to stay focused if we’re getting out of here alive, do you understand me?”

“Yes.”

“Xiaojun killed your father.” Kun said it slowly and bluntly, it was the best course of action at this moment. There’s no use in sugarcoating the truth. Your eyes glossed over, now wouldn’t be the best time to cry, now would it? There are much more pressing matters, such as the fire that raged just outside the med bay doors, such as surviving to live another day, or such as figuring out how to get out of here in general, what with that pile of rubble that blocked the pathway from the med bay to the emergency exit. Was now a good time to mourn your father? Was now a good time to hate Xiaojun? Kun took a hold of your other wrist. “(Y/N), breathe.” You didn’t even realize that you had stopped, honestly.

“Why?” Your voice was small. “Why did he kill my father?”

“He tried to stop the Major Events from happening, (Y/N). But, as you could probably tell, they didn’t stop. Trust me when I say that Xiaojun regrets it, (Y/N), he really does—”

“Is that why he tried to help me escape at first? Because he killed my dad?” You slowly sat down on the floors, trying to take in the whole situation. Kun hesitated. “Please tell me… Kun…”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

“I can’t think of any other reason why he’d owe your father, (Y/N),” Kun continues. You pull your hands out of his grip and hold them to both sides of your head.

“What else will this _damn_ Sector take away from me? Actually, what else has it already taken?!” You were on the verge of a mental breakdown, that much was clear, and at this point, you were looking more forward to jumping into the vacuum of space as opposed to spending another second in this fucking place. 

“(Y/N),” Kun’s voice was calm despite the situation. He put his hands on your shoulders. “Did you find the emergency exit?” You looked up at him with slight disbelief, you’re here, freaking out, just coming to terms that _Xiaojun_ , of all of the people, killed your father, and he’s asking you this _now_? But when you looked into his eyes, you relaxed yourself. He was diverting your attention, you had to keep reminding yourself that now was not the time to succumb to your thoughts. Now, of all times, is when you would have to use your energy to escape.

“Yeah… I found it.” He helped you up slowly.

“And where did you end up finding the emergency exit?” Kun asks.

“It’s at the end of the East Wing,” you explained. “But last I remembered, the ceiling caved in between Xuxi and I so…”

“So you have no clue how to get back there, right? Just our luck,” Kun shakes his head, but the confusion on his features was more than clear. “So how did you get back here then?”

“I… uh… went through a door.” When you and Kun both turned to face the med bay’s entrance, it was then when you realized how ridiculous that statement had sounded. “Look, Kun, I’m not sure how I can explain this to you, but when I was in that room, I had seven options. And I chose yours. I thought if I said the keyword on the door I’d remember everything, but I’m still drawing a blank. All I know is that I walked through your door, and now I’m here. So I don’t care what we have to do, but we’re getting out of here,” you nodded. Kun listened to every word you said and smiled softly.

“After everything I did, or everything you thought I did, you still chose to trust me?”

“Preferably, yeah.”

“ _Preferably_ , huh? That’s better than a no,” Kun grabs his shirt and pulls it back on. “Thank you, (Y/N). For finally deciding to trust me.”

“Took me long enough, huh?” You admitted. You thought back to the moment right before you entered his door, Kun never did anything to you directly. He never harmed you in any way and, if anything, he had only been helping you since Day 1. From that time in the old Records Room, when he pulled you out of the way of the falling shelf and even helped you look for the missing flight records that you probably didn’t even need, to when you were running with Yangyang and you had trapped him inside of his cell, when you thought back to it, he was definitely telling you to run away from the other inmate, and oh how you wished you had listened to him. And the fact that he had this whole plan with Xiaojun, he had only been intending to help you escape from the start, but had to find a way to avoid any of the Major Events happening themselves. You were right. You were too quick to judge Kun, and part of you regretted it. Maybe if you waited for him that day, you wouldn’t have been in this situation at all. Maybe you would’ve gotten the codes from Ten faster, and maybe you would’ve been in your room right now, laying on your bed and staring at the stars.

But at the same time… he wouldn’t have been there either. It would’ve just been you again, you’d be back to your boring old life with nothing more than a job in Records and a shitty supervisor.

“Watch your arm, (Y/N),” Kun interrupted your thoughts.

“Definitely,” you rubbed both of your arms, you’d have to take care to make sure that nothing happens between now and when you make it into the emergency exit. You both walked out of the med bay together and, to say the obvious, the Sector was worst than when you left it. “God… I can barely see anything anymore,” you held your hand over your nose to try to filter out all of the smoke and looked around, when a certain figure hunched in the corner caught your attention. Kun rushed over to you and covered your eyes, dragging you with him.

“Hey! What’s the big idea?!” You tried to pry his hand off of your face.

“East Wing, that’s where the emergency exit is, right?” Kun’s voice was shaky, and you stopped fighting him.

“Which one of them was it, Kun?” To be honest, you didn’t want to know which one you just saw. Maybe it would’ve been better if you didn’t know.

“Guanheng,” Kun’s hand moves from your eyes to your arm while he pulls you through the fiery area. “But… he’s been dead since I pulled him out of the Boiler Room, there’s nothing we could’ve done,” Kun presses on.

“For that long?”

“Maybe… I just didn’t want you to see him like that,” he pulls you out of the way of a falling scrap of metal.

“What about the others, Kun?”

“Well, I’m sure you don’t want to see Xiaojun.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Figures. He went down to the West, so we won’t be seeing him. Sicheng followed him, but not to help, if you know what I mean. Ten and Yangyang ran off to the Warden’s Office to see if there was any way to stop the fire. And I honestly don’t have a clue where Xuxi went off to,” Kun finishes.

“And we are going towards the Warden’s Office… right?” You had to be honest, you knew well that they were all inmates, that they were all beyond saving, but part of you still wanted to try. And you hoped to god that through this emergency exit they will find a way to change for the better. If the exit truly took them back to the time before they committed their crime to get in here in the first place… maybe they could avoid it.

“Right.” Kun nodded, he pulled you down the hallway, and right past the unconscious body of Yangyang.

~

“Kun, please, now isn’t the time to be keeping secrets!” You were angry, and rightfully so. Kun leaned against his apartment wall and shook his head. He really walked right into this one, he should’ve known better than to keep this from you. You were sharp, that’s one of the things he loved the most about you, even if you didn’t act on your hunches as often as you should, you always knew when something was up. “Kun, tell me the truth, please.”

“Yeah, I am overwhelmed,” Kun said it reluctantly, he knew once he said it, your relationship would’ve never been the same. “With work, my parents, your parents, old friends, bills, loans, and, god, even _you_ sometimes! I’m overwhelmed, (Y/N)! I can only handle so much until I feel like I’m going to break something.” You flinched back away from him, holding your arm up in front of you. Kun immediately took a step back himself, looking at your arm and back to you constantly.

“Kun… put the knife down…” you looked at his right hand, and Kun was quick to follow. He put it down as soon as you said so. Why was he even holding that? When did he move over from the living room to the kitchen? “(Y/N), you know I would never hurt you.” He reached out for you and you took another step back.

“I… I know… but… you’re really scaring me right now, Kun,” your breathing was getting heavier. “I think… I think I should go. I’ll just stay at my parents’ house, okay?”

“No, don’t do that,” Kun rushed in front of you and blocked your way to the front door.

“And why not?” Your tone was starting to get steadier, a telltale sign that you were getting angry.

“It’s three in the morning, (Y/N), it’s not safe for you to go out right now!”

“Not safe?! What?! Do you think I’m a child, Kun?!”

“You’re used to the small-town life where everyone knows everyone so the odds of something happening at 3 a.m. are close to none, (Y/N), you’re in the city now! People here aren’t as _nice_ or _careful_ as people over _there_.” It was very rare for Kun to lose his patience, and to be honest, you didn’t know where the outburst came from. But you took a deep breath in and calmed your nerves.

“I’m going to bed.”

“(Y/N), let’s talk this through,” Kun’s voice softened. He was never the one to go to bed angry, he preferred that the issue be resolved as soon as possible. But when you held your hand up and shook your head, he knew that it would be better if he didn’t say anything at all.

“Good night,” you turned away from him and walked into his room, locking it behind you.

“Huh, locked out of my own bedroom, well played, (Y/N),” Kun sighs. He sat on the couch and pulled his laptop close to him. Might as well finish the thing that started the argument, right? Get rid of one last stress so he could deal with the others. How did that argument even start, anyway? Everything was going so well, you were both happy, you were both content. Was it that whole ordeal in his office building? With Jongin? He had to admit that he was put off by it, maybe it did ruin his mood for the rest of the day, but he couldn’t see how that led to this argument, even though he knew inside that it did. Kun looked at the email again. It was so cryptic, he didn’t even know why he received it. Of course, he was going to bring you with him to the office, he wouldn’t leave you on your own in the city, but he just couldn’t understand why he received this email, and at the same time he didn’t want to just throw it away.

He didn’t know when he fell asleep, but he did know when he woke up, and it was because he heard you shriek. He tossed his laptop away from him and sprinted to his bedroom, tugging on the door handle until he got frustrated enough to kick the door down anyway, but the crime had already happened. There you were, on the floor, _dead_. He didn’t even try to delude himself into thinking you were still alive, there’s no way that someone could be alive and look like _that_. He heard the window close next to him, and he ran over there next. He threw it back open and caught sight of the person who was running away, Kun reached over and grabbed onto the intruder’s bloodied arm to try to prevent him from jumping down the fire escape stairway, but the murderer shook himself out of Kun’s grasp, but not before Kun tore off something from the killer’s wrist. He held the metal item up to the moonlight, and he knew immediately who it was that broke into his house. He’d recognize this watch from anywhere, the Datejust 41. It’s not like he hasn’t heard his supervisor brag about his Rolex every single _fucking_ second of every single workday. He was already dialing the emergency services when he heard the sirens. The officers kicked down his front door and came in with guns raised.

“Officers, just in time, the killer escaped through the—”

“Qian Kun, you’re under arrest for suspected murder. Called in by your neighbors next door, they were telling us about an argument the two of you were having, and as soon as they heard her shriek they called us.”

~

“Kun! Wait, you’re holding onto my arm too hard,” you yanked your arm away from him again. “We’ve been walking for ages, where’s the Warden’s Office?!” You had to ask, you were certain that you two were going around in circles at this point.

“Down there,” Kun pointed down a corridor and you looked over to it, but quickly felt your heart drop. The pathway there was blocked, there was no way that anyone could make it in there, or out. “I tried walking around to see if there was another way in but there’s no way.”

“So… we just leave Ten and Yangyang there?” You were in disbelief, and rightfully so. The odds of your best friend being dead were too high at this point.

“If you want, you can run in and die with them.”

“I’m dumb, but not that dumb, Kun,” you chastised. You tried to see through the flames and the debris and, sure enough, the Warden’s Office was just in view. But there was something else, something moving towards the both of you. Something… “Kun! Move out of the way,” you pulled him over just as Ten broke through the wall of fire. He tossed the metal sheet aside and pointed his gun straight at Kun.

“(Y/N), perfect timing! I was just about to go look for you… Now move over.”

“Ten, hold on, let’s not be rash,” you stayed between the two, but Ten loaded the bullet into place.

“I won’t say it again,” he lowered the gun towards your arm, and Kun reacted first, knowing full well that neither of you could’ve risked that Major Event. The bullet ricocheted off of the metal platform behind you and lodged itself into the wall, causing the oxygen pipe to burst. “Wonderful, just _wonderful_. Where’s the key, (Y/N)? We’re getting out of here.” You stayed frozen, there was something wrong, you just knew it.

“Ten… are you alright?” Your eyes focused in on the gun pointed to you. Whoever this was in front of you, and you knew this since you opened the cell hours before, wasn’t your best friend. Whoever this Ten was, you knew you didn’t recognize him, you knew he wasn’t the same one you grew up with. Something changed in him, and you couldn’t help but feel guilty because of it. What could you have done better? What could you have changed? You shouldn’t have stolen his keycard, you shouldn’t have come to the Sector, this is all your fault.

“Me? Alright? No, never, I just killed two people to get here,” Ten scoffs. “But listen, we can’t have these lunatics out in the general public again, who knows what they’re going to do? Plus, they’re all so adamant on keeping you for themselves, we can’t have that, now can we? Surely, you agree with me, right?” Ten loaded another bullet in place.

“Who?”

“Guanheng and Yangyang… actually, I just killed Xuxi too, almost forgot about him,” Ten laughs. “What can I say, he got in the way. (Y/N) I trapped myself in here to get you out, and _only_ you. I don’t give a damn if anyone else has to die for me to do it,” Ten threw his hands out and smiled.

“Come on now, don’t you want to go back home? We can go back to how things used to be,” Ten’s voice was sickeningly sweet.

“Ten, you need to stop,” Kun stepped in again and Ten’s smile drops.

“It’s always us three in the end, isn’t it?” Ten shook his head. “Oh… but neither of you would know what I’m saying, silly me. I don’t know what I was expecting,” Ten fired again and Kun grabbed the closest piece of metal to him to block it. You ran over to Ten and tried to pull the gun out of his hands.

“Ten! Stop! You’re not acting like yourself anymore!” You tried to get through to him, but he took your arm held it behind you, turning you to face Kun, and as soon as you felt the gun pressed to your head, you stopped struggling. “Ten… what are you doing?”

“So this was your plan the whole time, Kun?! Get her stuck in the Sector and play savior?! Fuck you,” Ten growled.

“You wouldn’t.”

“Oh, but I would,” Ten holstered the gun and grabbed onto your arm, one hand holding your wrist, and the other your elbow. “I’ve read your little notes with Xiaojun, and I’m not as dumb as you think I am. And, most of all, I’m not going to let you escape with _her_.” You stomped on his foot and pushed away from him, but he kept his grip on your arm. 

“Kun!” Xiaojun’s voice boomed over the chaos. The other inmate ran up behind Ten and put him in a chokehold. “I’ve got this one, you two get out of here! There should be at least someone to escape,” he tightens his hold and Ten lets go of your arm, instead trying to pry Xiaojun off of him.

“But—”

“Is now really the time for arguing, (Y/N)?” Xiaojun dragged Ten away from you. “Just go already!” Kun ran up behind you and took your arm again.

“We have to go _now_ ,” he insists. You looked back at Xiaojun while Kun pulled you away.

“(Y/N)!” Xiaojun called out your name one last time. “I’m sorry.” He stepped back into the hallway towards the Warden’s Office, bringing Ten with him. You didn’t know what it was he was apologizing for. Was it for killing your father? Was it for lying to you? Was it for killing Ten? Was it for something else? You’d probably never know at this point. And you’d never have the chance to ask, either.

“(Y/N), it’s okay,” Kun stopped moving and he put his hands on your shoulders again. “It’s okay, we’ll take a break, I know how overwhelming this all is right now.” Kun held you steady while your vision blurred.

“I can cry after we get out, Kun, I’ll deal with these emotions afterward,” you had to stay strong, if you hesitated or stopped for too long you’d both be dead in a matter of minutes. And you weren’t too keen on dying a slow and painful death.

“We’re midway through the East Wing, if you show me where you and Xuxi initially got separated I can figure out a way around it,” Kun explains. You nodded your head and ran down the hallway with him.

“Xuxi and I got separated after walking straight shot down this main hall! So we should run into the wall of metal soon,” you easily recalled the route and the twists and turns you made after getting separated. You remembered that despite all of the distractions in the middle. You were going to escape, and you weren’t going to do it alone.

“(Y/N)! Stop running!” Kun looked forward right as you crashed into a wall. You turned back and you had to do a double-take. Kun helped you up and patted down the flames on your shirt. “What’s wrong? We still have a ways to go!”

“Wait, no, Kun, this is the exit,” you tugged him back towards you and opened the door. Sure enough, there was that metal box in the center of the room.

“I thought you said—”

“Yeah, I thought so too… maybe a new cycle started while we were running,” you looked down the other side of the hall, watching the flames get even more intense. Then you turned back around and walked into the room, Kun closed the doors behind you.

“You still have that key, right?”

“Yeah,” you pulled it out of your bra and Kun blinked twice. “Figured that I’ve gotten pickpocketed enough so the safest place was there,” you admitted. You walked up to the keyhole and hovered the silver key above it.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know, but something doesn’t feel right,” you hesitated again, but you shook it off and pushed the key into the box and turned. “Um…” you tried to twist the key more, but the lock wouldn’t turn any more than it had already done. You tried the reverse, but it still didn’t work. You pulled the key out and turned to Kun.

“Let me try,” you hand him the key and he did the same as you did. “What the… why isn’t it working?” Kun hit the side of the box and tried it again.

“Yeah… that wasn’t going to work,” you looked around the room, then you spotted something on the floor in the corner, specifically where you remembered Kun’s door was. You walked over to it and picked it up, letting the thin chain drape through your fingers. Sure enough, this was your locket. Did it fall off while you walked through the door? You looked down at your chest, but you were indeed wearing your locket, so what was this in your hands? You took it off of your neck and held them side by side, and they were identical.

“What’s that?” Kun asks. You walk over to him and drop the lockets in his hands. He opens it, and the soft tune of Clair de Lune filled the silent room. He looks up at you and opens the other locket that was around your neck and as well. “Domino…? What the heck? I don’t remember that being in there.”

“What?” You look at the locket around your neck. “No, this has been here since forever,” you read the engraving on the inside of the lid.

“No, I turned in the watch that—” Kun catches himself. “That I found to a jeweler, and I asked him to melt it down into a locket for you. The engraving definitely wasn’t Domino, though. Actually, I don’t think I engraved it at all,” Kun shows you the lid of the other locket and, as he said, there was no engraving.

“Wait, you made the locket for me?” You tilted your head to the side.

“Well, my timeline’s version of you, yeah. But there were some _circumstances_ —”

“I died, didn’t I?”

“Yeah.”

“Why am I not surprised,” you shrugged. You took the other locket and observed it. “I’m guessing that watch was important, huh?”

“The one thing I pulled off of the guy that killed you, yeah.”

“Ouch, murder? That doesn’t sound fun,” you tried to lighten the tense mood. The two of you were definitely going to die in here anyway. “What watch was it?” You fiddled around with the second locket and looked at the dents and scratches on it.

“Oh, it was a Rolex, why?” Kun asks.

“Ah…” your hand moved up to your head, the sudden pang of a headache signaling a much bigger one.

“Are you alright? Did you hit your head anywhere while we were running?”

“No, I don’t… argh…” you placed your hand on the box to steady yourself, and Kun moved to hold you up.

“What’s wrong? Did I say something?”

“Wait, back up,” you brought your other hand to your head and sank to the floor, trying to push through the splitting headache that threatened your sanity, and the world stopped. Kun was frozen in place, and one of the lockets was just about the hit the floor. But the other one did, and Clair de Lune continued to play from it, filling the tense atmosphere with a new feeling, and you felt the headache subside, instead, you began to recall new memories, they all pervaded your thoughts, filling in blanks and contradicting new memories you had made in the Sector. You didn’t recognize, recall, nor remember a good majority of them, and the same could be said for some of the people in them, and some of the things said in them. But they all felt relatively familiar to you, they all felt important to you. Then you heard the clatter of the second locket, and Kun crouched down in front of you.

“You’re okay, you’re okay, it was just a headache, right?” He asks. You looked into his eyes, and you remembered every single thing. “(Y/N)?”

“Kun.”

“Are you… alright?”

“I remember,” you looked down at the locket, then back up at him. Then you slapped him. Kun held the stinging side of his face, and he looked over to you.

“What the hell was that for?!”

“I can’t believe you wouldn’t let me go to my parents’ house!”

“It was 3 a.m.!”

“Okay but then I _died_ , Qian Kun, I don’t understand what the argument is!”

“You—” Kun stopped mid-sentence. “Oh my god, you do remember.”

“This is _such_ a _bad_ time to remember though we’re about to die!” You shout. You stood back up again. “And it’s because this dumb key doesn’t work on this dumb box!” You shoved the key in and twisted it. Then you both heard a click.

“What did you just do?”

“Uh… I don’t know…” you stared at the box, then the sides of the room started to illuminate, and you backed away from the key and walked back over to Kun. “I think I just turned it on…” you looked around at how the room shifted and changed around you, but soon the light became too much to handle, and you closed your eyes.

~

You shot up in bed. Clutching your chest tightly while you steadied your breathing. Kun stood up next to you and held you close to him.

“It’s okay, it was just a bad dream,” he whispers into the crown of your head. You clung onto him tightly. “Shh… it’s okay,” he ran his hands through your hair, and you relaxed slowly.

“Kun… I don’t…”

“It’s okay, it’s fine,” Kun comforts you. “You’ve been having these bad dreams lately, are you sure you don’t want to talk about them?” He holds your face between his hands gently.

“No… even if I wanted to… I don’t remember them,” you whispered.

“Isn’t that better then?” He eased you back down onto the pillow. “Just think happier thoughts, alright? Maybe it’s all the stress, (Y/N). You need to relax more,” he tucked you back into the blanket and got out of bed.

“Where are you going, Kun?” You turned over to him. Kun opened a drawer in his nightstand and took something out.

“I completely forgot to lock the door.”

“Are you kidding me? Maybe my nightmares are a result of my subconscious telling me that a stranger can just walk into your apartment,” you buried your face into your pillow.

“Relax, love, I’ll go lock it,” Kun chuckles. “I’ll be right back.”

“Mmhmm… whatever, Kun… just be careful.”

“I always am,” Kun walks out of the bedroom and closes it behind him. He sighs and shakes his head while he walks out of the apartment, staring out at the city below him. He spins around the silver key in his hands. “You’re causing a lot of trouble for us, aren’t you?” He holds it up to the moonlight.

“It was blessing enough that she doesn’t remember the past timeline, so instead you torment her in her dreams, hmm?” Kun nods to himself. When the light subsided, Kun woke up again in front of his laptop, and he noticed the strange email sitting unread in his inbox. Without another thought, he moved it to the trash without ever opening it. Then he went to open the door, and there you were, smiling happily like there wasn’t a single thing wrong. And the rest of the day continued just as he remembered it… only this time, as obvious as it should’ve been, you didn’t die. Kun was mildly disappointed at the fact that you didn’t remember your time in the last timeline, and he was curious as to why you didn’t, but he was glad that you didn’t have to go through the trauma. He found the silver key amongst your belongings in your backpack, and when he inquired about it, you said that you had no idea where it had come from. To which he told you that he’d turn it in, joking that you must have accidentally stolen it, but you agreed. It had been sitting in his nightstand ever since, and he was starting to think that it was the cause of all of your nightmares from the past few weeks. He looked at the key for a bit longer, tracing over the scratches and the burn marks on it, he thought back to all of the events that led up to its usefulness and its eventual uselessness, and he reminisced in those memories for quite some time, he never wanted the others to die, that has never been his intention nor will it ever be, he wanted to get everyone out just as much as you did. Even now, he feels awkward when he runs into his timeline’s versions of them. He feels even more afraid when _you_ run into them, because there was a slight unconscious fear that meeting them will ignite something in you and cause those memories to come back. But as far as he knew, that wasn’t going to happen any time soon. Again, Kun studied the silver key in his hands, memorizing every last detail of it, and committing all of the stories from its imperfections to memory.

Then he threw it into the busy traffic below.

Meanwhile, you sat in bed, and you constantly thought back to your nightmare. It was true, you didn’t remember a single thing from it, nothing but a singular line from your father, and you ‘ve even spoken to him about this, but he himself doesn’t remember ever saying it to you. But you couldn’t help but repeat the phrase in your head, it must mean _something_ , right? You figured that you’d ask Kun about it in the morning, he must be tired from work, after all, and you were tired from job hunting in the city. You ended up selling your old small-town house, but the money from that transaction won’t last forever. You both had to be smart now.

You turned over under the sheets and thought about that phrase again, that phrase that haunted your nightmares…

**_‘You can only save one.’_ **


	12. Retriever [Xuxi Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 8.7K
> 
> Notes: Xuxi, Xuxi! Personally, I kind of like this ending. But that’s because Xuxi do be my boy though. But anyway, second ending! I think the order should be quite clear by now, hehe. So I’m sure you all know who to look forward to next! Again, thank you for enjoying this story with me! I’ll see you in the next ending or interrogation room, hehe.
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Violence, Murder, Mentions of a Break In, Death

“There aren’t any clouds tonight,” you pointed up at the sky, trying to make shapes between the stars.

Through some stroke of luck, Xuxi was able to successfully sneak not just into your backyard but also your rooftop that night, and he was very adamant on you joining him there. He was really expecting you to say no and to come in before he hurt himself, but you grabbed onto his hand and let him pull you up. So now, in your basic pajamas, here you were. Next to him and staring up at the stars above. It was something Xuxi had always appreciated in you, the way you saw things as opportunities, the way you had this “all things good” understanding of the world, and it endeared him in every way possible. If you hadn’t have had it, who knows, maybe you would’ve never found it in your heart to talk to the boy that was always in your father’s holding cell.

“Yeah, it’s beautiful,” Xuxi lays his jacket on top of you and you snuggled into it.

“My mother knew all of the constellations, she used to point them out to me when I was little.”

“Do you still know them?”

“I know a few,” you shrugged. “That one right there, the one that makes a crooked ‘W’ shape, is Cassiopeia. And I think Andromeda is nearby too…” you looked around the starry night. Xuxi turned his head slightly, watching you look for the constellation. You just had this effect on him, you made him think and say things that would normally make any basic person gag, and you made him feel like he could take on the world without a care. Even right now, at this moment, despite the clear summer nights, the only stars he cared about were the ones reflected in your eyes. The first day he saw them, he knew that there was something about you that was different, but he didn’t dare call it love until recently. The times he has pushed you away, the times you came back, and the one time you didn’t, and the one time he came to you, that’s when he knew what exactly it was that he was feeling.

“I love you.” He had said it to you so many times now, that he was afraid that it would’ve become repetitive, but so far every time he has said it the phrase still had the same amount of weight as the first time the words escaped on their own. And every time you’d have the same lovestruck expression. You turned to him now, slightly shocked at the sudden remark, but your features softened quickly. It was no lie, Xuxi cleaned up his act for you, he never thought he’d ever fall in love, let alone with the daughter of the one officer who always had it out for him, but here he was, secretly planning their wedding that they would never be able to afford.

“I love you too,” your voice was so soft, so sweet, it was something that Xuxi could never get used to. Even now, lying down on top of your rooftop, Xuxi was questioning how the hell you loved a boy like him. He was questioning why you risked your sanity every night to sneak him into your house, he was questioning why you went through so much for him, and goodness gracious he was questioning why the hell he was so whipped for you, but he wouldn’t have it any other way. He would give up everything in this world _just_ for you. “But you already know that,” you poked his side playfully and shifted over to him, lying your head down on his shoulder.

He could get used to this.

The way that the both of you were so relaxed together, the way that you each could trust each other a healthy amount, and the way that he knew that in the end, it would always at least be you two. He held your hand delicately and traced his thumb over your soft palms, sometimes he had to remind himself that you were your own person too, you didn’t need someone to watch over you at every move, but sometimes he couldn’t help it, you’d never get angry though, but you would remind him when he did overstep. Again, not that he did it often, he had always admired the way you spoke up for yourself, actually, he had always admired you in general, he just never recognized that he did until recently.

“Park (Y/N)!”

Oh shit.

“Dad!” You scrambled away from Xuxi. “How did you—”

“Get down here before I call the cops.”

“But you are the cops,” you whispered.

“(Y/N).”

“Right, yeah, coming down,” you shared a worried glance at Xuxi, but he only nodded his head. Your father was never a fan of him, your mother did like him actually, but she’s gone now. However, he never really understood why he was never able to get through to your dad, Xuxi just settled with the idea that no matter what he did, he’d never satisfy him. Xuxi could’ve won a Nobel Prize and your father would still hate him with every fiber of his being.

And that much was made clear with the way your father yelled at him, the way he demeaned him, the way he insulted him to no end. What made it worse was that in the past Xuxi would fight back, he wasn’t afraid to square up and punch a cop, until you came into the picture and suddenly it wasn’t just about him anymore. Although you fought back, Xuxi knew better than to raise his voice at an officer given his record, anything could land him in jail, and that was the last thing he wanted you to go through. He saw what happened to people when someone they loved was locked away, and he knew better than to let you experience that.

“Xuxi, just go,” you held onto his arm and whispered it hurriedly. “It’s okay, you don’t have to go through this,” you told him. Even if you didn’t say it, Xuxi ended up being shoved out of the door by your father anyway.

“And don’t _fucking_ come back!” Your father slammed the door and you flinched back. He turned to you and calmed down. “And you, I told you god knows how many times to stop seeing that _boy_. All he is to you is trouble, do you hear me, young lady?!” He shouts. Xuxi stared at the closed door a debated kicking it down but, as you had told him many times before, force would never be the way to get your father to budge, and he knew that, but it really tore him apart knowing that you were the one who was solely on the receiving end of this one. He shook his head and walked over to the sidewalk and looked at the scene from the front window, and to be horribly honest he was… kind of entertained. You looked like you were trying your hardest not to curse out your father right there and, good god how proud he was to see how he was rubbing off on you, not to say that he didn’t love you for how you are now. Then you finally noticed him watching you, and you stopped arguing momentarily, you brought your hand up to your earlobe and pinched it softly, and Xuxi knew that signal well. He waved goodbye to you, taking his time to walk home, because tonight was going to be a big night, and one that the two of you will never forget.

When Xuxi got to the rusted down trailer he lived in, the first thing he noticed was the letter taped to his car. Was he annoyed? Maybe. He was half expecting it to be a ticket for whatever illegal thing the police tried to pin on him again, which has been happening more often as of late. No doubt the work of your father, he was always trying to find a way to make him look bad, after all. He took the letter off of his windshield and tore the tape off, opening it quickly, but all it had was one name on it, it was written rather messily, and in all capital letters. 

“Who the hell’s Park Chanyeol?” He flipped it over, but there were still no words on the letter. He shrugged his shoulders and tossed the letter in the trash, entering his trailer for probably the last time. He sat down on the squeaky bed, feeling the harsh springs bounce up and down, so many things happened in this trailer, and he’d be lying if he said that he wasn’t going to miss it. This whole trailer, what was once filled with memories of a boy just getting by, was now filled with memories of you. You trying to cook breakfast, you trying to clean up the sitting area, you sleeping next to him, they were all memories he cherished. He never really realized how much brighter the atmosphere of this run down place he called home changed after you entered his life. Even now, though you weren’t in it, it seemed livelier than when he first moved here. Xuxi couldn’t even count all of the memories that were made in here, and he wouldn’t dare try, because then he’d never leave.

But, knowing that he is about to make better ones, more worthwhile ones, that’s what mattered the most. And although he was always the more emotional one of the two of you, he has always been the more realistic one as well.

He looked at his watch, it was half to midnight at this point, he didn’t even realize that he spent that long reminiscing. He shoved two small boxes into his backpack, he had to leave some room for anything you bring, of course. The first was the small cookie tin his mother left him, he had never opened it but had a feeling that he’d need it, and the second was a chocolate tin, one from you specifically, and it was filled with all the things he could ever need. He pulled a shoebox from under the bed and counted the bills, truth be told he’s been taking more and more odd jobs around the town, saving up for this very night and his hard work naturally paid off. Then, he stepped out into the night and locked the trailer for the last time. He jumped onto his motorcycle and made a straight beeline for your place, parking it a good block away and walking the rest.

He hopped your backyard fence the same way he’s done many times before, and leaned against it once he was on the other side, looking up at your bedroom window, he waited. And waited, and waited. Then, finally, you stuck your head out and waved to him, holding up two small boxes of your own. You stepped out into the unstable roof shingles, and looked back into your room for the last time. Then, you steadily lowered yourself down onto the grassy yard. With one strong affirmative nod, Xuxi helped you over the fence, and the two of you took off running.

“Oh my god, we’re crazy, we’re actually crazy,” you laughed. It was so full of joy, so lively, and Xuxi himself had only heard it a few times, you only ever laughed like that when you truly felt happy. It shocked him so much, that he actually hesitated before handing you the second helmet. “What’s wrong?”

“Are you sure you want to do this? There’s no going back, after this.” Xuxi was being serious, there was no way your father would take you back after you leave, he’d probably have him arrested too if anything. And he wouldn’t blame you if you had second thoughts, the both of you were leaving a whole life behind, and for what? Would you really choose a high school dropout over a normal life? When you took the helmet out of his hands and strapped it on yourself, he knew the answer.

“Xuxi, I thought I told you already,” you hugged him tightly. “I would, and always will, choose you.”

~

You stumbled out of the door and straight back into the fiery hallways of Sector V, and the door behind you shut all on its own. You opened it again and stared at the Records Room, it felt like it had been decades since you had last seen it, and now all of those pieces of paper were nothing more but kindling to the raging fire. You still had the 2004 flight records on you, not that you could read it at all, but you were surprised that it wasn’t even more damaged than before.

“Back to where I started…” you mumbled.

“(Y/N)?!” You knew that voice.

“Xuxi!” You ran towards him.

“Where have you been?! We’ve been looking all over for you… and how did you get back?!” he shouts. “Fuck…” he pulls you out of the way of a flame.

“Uh, good question, but I was looking for the emergency exit…”

“That’s a thing?!” Xuxi kicked over a piece of metal.

“Yeah? I thought you all knew about it, Xiaojun was telling me and a few others about it.”

“How come I didn’t know that?”

“I think you were busy passed out in the Boiler Room.”

“Oh, makes sense,” Xuxi calms himself down. “Well, did you find it?!”

“Yeah,” you nodded your head and looked around. “Where are the others?”

“Ten took off somewhere, and Guanheng’s in the med bay with Yangyang.”

“Is that a good idea?”

“Oh, _no_. Not at all,” Xuxi shakes his head. “But everyone else is _missing_.”

“Alright, Guanheng first,” you walked down the hallway, taking care to avoid dangers along the way, and Xuxi kept his own vigilant eye out. “How long have I been gone?”

“I don’t know, like an hour maybe?” Xuxi answers, he shakes his head and brushes out a small fire that started on the edge of his shirt. That would explain why the Sector was in an even worse state than when you left it, who knows how much time you had left before it was all over. He tugs you over down another intersection and pushes open the med bay doors.

The med bay was, miraculously, not on fire. And at the furthest bed was Guanheng and Yangyang, speaking quietly despite the chaos. Yangyang noticed you first.

“(Y/N)! You’re still alive!” He waves you over. Now Guanheng noticed you.

“How did you get back? Xuxi told us that the only pathway where you were was blocked,” Guanheng plays with the bandages around his chest.

“I… uh…” you thought about it for a second, and there was no sane way of you explaining it. “It’s a long story,” you mumbled.

“What matters is that you’re back now though,” Yangyang nods. He pulls a chair over for you and hums. “So I don’t know how else to say this other than ‘we’re fucked.’” He throws his hands up in the air.

“We’re actually going to die in here…” Guanheng says slowly. “Like, I knew we were since the beginning, but… I didn’t think it’d be like this… I was kind of hoping that I’d just close my eyes and, you know, _die_.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s what we were all thinking at first,” Xuxi grimaces. “It’s better than burning to death.”

“Maybe we’ll have to ration the other inmates faster than we planned, Xuxi,” Yangyang’s eyes darken for a moment before they light up again. “Just kidding, (Y/N).”

“Where are Kun and the others?” You asked, trying to stop the conversation before it took a turn for the worse.

“As soon as Kun dragged me, Guanheng, and Ten out he bolted. Said something about how Xiaojun was in trouble, I have no clue where they are now,” Yangyang answers. “But that should be a good thing, right? They wanted you to stay, and we want to help you get out.”

“That’s true, but we still don’t have Ten’s keycard,” you reasoned. “Speaking of, where is he?”

“Chased after Kun.”

“Oh no, that can’t be good.”

“Nope, but we’ve got more pressing problems,” Guanheng continues. “For example, not burning to death.”

“Yeah, and it’s only a matter of time until the oxygen pipe—” Xuxi stops talking right as the alarm blares above the group. “Bursts.”

“I’m guessing that’s it, huh?” You frowned.

“Yup,” Yangyang messes up his hair and tosses the roll of bandages aside. “Alright, so forget about the second key card, then.”

“We could just go to that nifty emergency exit (Y/N) was talking about,” Xuxi offers.

“I’m sorry, nifty _what_?” Yangyang shakes his head.

“Oh, yeah. Xiaojun was telling me, Kun, and Sicheng about it. It’s supposed to send us back to our original timelines,” you took out the silver key Ten had given you. “And this is supposed to be how to start it.”

“Why didn’t you tell us about that in the first place?” Yangyang frowns.

“You guys didn’t give me a chance to,” you mumbled and put the key away. “I still remember how to get there, but there’s a slight problem.”

“Right, the ceiling caved in on the way there,” Xuxi finishes. “We could probably move it out of the way if it was the four of us doing it.”

“It’s a plan then, to the emergency exit,” Guanheng nods.

“What about the others?” You spoke up.

“Sure, we can get them too, I guess… but can we leave Xiaojun?” Yangyang asks.

“No!” All three of you answer. Yangyang throws his hands up.

“Okay, okay, geez, I just figured that I’d ask,” he says. “Alright then, I saw which was Ten ran off to, so I’ll go in that direction, the three of you can start clearing the way,” Yangyang says.

“Are we really getting plans from _him_?” Guanheng looked slightly worried.

“Do you have a better idea?” Xuxi raises an eyebrow.

“No… not really.”

“In that case, let’s go.” Yangyang pulls out the fire extinguisher, and the three of you each gave him the same look.

“I mean… you’ll never know,” he shrugs. You all stood out in the hallway again, the disaster wasn’t any better or worse than when you first left it, luckily, but it was still an obstacle in and of itself. “Ten went down that way, so I’ll meet up with you guys again, just right of the Boiler Room, yeah?”

“Yup, we’ll see you in a few, Yangyang,” Xuxi shakes Yangyang’s shoulder and the younger one nods before taking off. The remaining members of the group went the opposite way, towards the mountain of rubble that blocked everyone from their escape. You pointed down the hallway.

“Do you think we can just move around it?” You squinted your eyes to see the end, but there was none in sight.

“We’re probably better off checking for that than trying to dig through this,” Guanheng says. “I say it’s worth a shot.”

“Agreed,” you each turned down the hallway and tried to round the block, but ended up right where you started again. “Uh… that’s not right.”

“Nope, not at all,” Guanheng runs back, but then emerges in front of you and Xuxi.

“Of all the damn times,” Xuxi shakes his head. “Makes sense that the Sector would be glitching out because of the fire,” he punches the wall of metal and immediately retracts his hand, shaking off the burning sensation from his knuckles.

“Yeah… that wasn’t going to work at all,” Guanheng shakes his head, but then his eyes widen and he bends down and picks something up from the ground. “Isn’t this the—”

“The keycard!” You walk up to him and he hands it to you, flipping the card around in your hands.

“We can get you out then,” Xuxi looks down the hall. “We can definitely figure out how to get to the entrance from here,” he looks at the pile of metal behind him.

“It would be faster,” Guanheng agrees. You pushed the metal pieces, but they refused to budge. You thought back to what Xiaojun had told you, his fear that if you tried to escape that way it would lead to your death, but as long as you didn’t break your arm, all should be well, right? That should be the last major event.

“But what about you guys?”

“We’ll figure out how to get to the emergency exit,” Guanheng says, “I’m sure once we find Ten, we’ll be able to figure it out.”

“Are you sure?” You held the silver key in your hands.

“Yeah, he’s the Warden, after all,” Guanheng reasons. “You know what, just don’t worry about it, (Y/N), this is about you getting out,” he says.

“That’s what you’ve wanted to do from the start, right?” Xuxi asks. You nodded your head and handed the key to Guanheng.

“Alright, we head to the front then, considering this is the East Wing, as long as we move forward we should get there.”

“It’ll be faster than this thing,” you kicked the metal again. You jumped to the side when another piece of ceiling fell. “We should go.”

“We should go,” Xuxi agreed. So, again, you took a detour towards the front of the Sector.

~

“Ugh…” Xuxi waves off the smoke clouds coming from the hood of the car he was working on. “Geez, what the hell did Chanyeol do with this?” He inspects the engine closely and tries to figure out what was wrong with it.

It’s been about a year now since his and yours escapade, and so far, neither have you have come to regret it. You found a job as a student teacher right off the bat, and soon you were able to become a kindergarten teacher yourself after working hard through school. Xuxi, meanwhile, has still worked various odd jobs around town, and lately, he’s been tapping back into his memories of sitting in his dad’s garage. He had no clue how he lucked out so easily, connections really did get you places. From getting the house from his best friend, and coincidentally the mayor’s son, Hendery to staying off the radar with his friend on the force Jungwoo, Xuxi was in the eyes of lady luck. Not to mention that you’re still with him, a gift that he’ll never take for granted, _ever_.

“Xuxi!” You stuck your head in the garage and waved at him.

“(Y/N), what’s up?” Xuxi looks up from the car and you laughed, grabbing the towel from the table off to the side and wiping the oil from his face.

“Working hard, I see,” you looked into the car and twisted one of the knobs. “Try it now.” Xuxi started the car and the engine stopped emitting smoke.

“How did you do that?”

“My dad’s patrol car used to have the same problem,” you chuckled. “It’s been hot lately, that could be it,” you closed the hood of the car.

“So what did you need?” Talking about your father was one way to put Xuxi on edge, it was mostly just the residual stress from all those times he put him behind bars, really.

“Okay, wait for it…” You mumbled.

“What happened? Are you alright?”

“Oh, yeah, I’m good, but uh…” you opened the door to the garage and a golden retriever bounced into the garage, running up to Xuxi first and wagging his tail excitedly. “Ta da!” you smiled. Xuxi looked at the dog, then to you multiple times.

“Hey, he finally got himself a nice collar,” Xuxi rubbed the dog’s head affectionately.

“Yup! Biscuit is officially a part of the family,” you called the retriever over and tossed him a treat. Yes, the dog’s name is Biscuit, after the children’s book. When you had first adopted him as a puppy, your class was quick to give him the name after the adorable fictional puppy, and how could you say no to all of them? Xuxi actually liked it quite nicely as well, knowing him he probably would’ve named the retriever something basic like Bingo, so he was grateful for the children’s creativity. Xuxi crouches down next to you and pets Biscuit behind his ears. “Good boy… I’m going to teach you so many tricks,” Biscuit turns around and sits next to Xuxi.

“Waaah, he likes you so much more,” you stood up and brushed off your pants. 

“Good day at work then, I’m guessing?”

“Oh yeah, definitely,” you sang. “The kids are learning so fast, it’s kind of making me sad. They always say that don’t need Ms. Park anymore because—”

“Hi, Mrs. Huang!” One of the children from your class called out. One of the best parts about living in a small town is everyone knowing everyone, after all. An awkward smile formed on your face and Xuxi broke out into laughter.

“What are you waiting for, Mrs. Huang? Say hi back,” he teases.

“Hi, Mr. Huang!” The little boy waves to Xuxi too before running off to his house just two doors down from you.

“Looks like they don’t need Ms. Park since she’s someone else, huh?” Xuxi pokes your side and you smiled through the blush on your face, playing with the ring on your finger. It was a very simple silver ring, for now. Xuxi had plans of getting a better one, but he had to admit that financially that wasn’t the best choice. And you, being the angel as always, told him that as long as it was the two of you, nothing else mattered.

“Oh, before I forget, the manager from SM Motors called earlier, he told me to tell you that they scheduled an interview for you tomorrow morning.”

“Wait, really?” Xuxi turns to you with wide eyes. You nodded excitedly and Xuxi had to take a moment to himself. After countless applications and calls, he finally got a chance to finally get a steady job and get all of his and your debts cleared, or at least get a head start on it. “Holy shit… that’s amazing!” Xuxi hugs you tight to him and you laughed.

“Ew, you’re all sticky,” you joked.

“Yes, I’m your sticky husband,” Xuxi handed you a towel once the two of you separated, the goofy smile still apparent on his features. “Maybe we can turn that basement into a makeshift office.” 

He meant it as a joke, actually. The thing about the basement, that is. It was a rather accidental discovery that you had made during spring cleaning, and honestly, the room rubbed Xuxi the wrong way. It was completely devoid of everything, and it just settled something upsetting in both of you, so he elected to just cover it up with a rug and recliner and you both had the mutual agreement to pretend that it wasn’t there. And the thought of him working in it kind of worried him, he couldn’t help but feel like someone was killed in there or something, it’s not like you and him were the first owners of this house, after all.

“What? No,” you looked shocked. “You’d either freeze or boil down there, Xuxi,” you leaned against the door frame.

“Maybe, but it’s just collecting dust right now,” Xuxi gets back to work on the car, now tackling the rattling sound that came from somewhere under the hood. “We’ll figure it out.”

“Yeah, definitely,” you stood back up again. “I’m going to get back to grading, I’ll see you later?”

“Of course,” Xuxi watches you leave before he started fiddling with the car again. It was strange, the car was jacked in so many places it almost looked like someone purposely messed with it, but everyone knew everyone, and Xuxi couldn’t think about anyone who would have it out for Chanyeol, he was always helping people around town, he was the kind of guy who didn’t have enemies, almost.

To say that Huang Xuxi was a happy man is an understatement, what word could he even use to describe how he felt every day? Ecstatic? Endeared? Lucky? He didn’t even know. He feels like he’s stuck in between the stage of Honeymoon and Comfortable, and he couldn’t ask for more. And every time you spoke about how happy you were, or how your day was, or even how you were having trouble with some of the kindergartener’s parents, he couldn’t help but fall more and more in love with you every day. And the same could be said on your end, never once did you ever doubt him, and never once did you ever consider your choice to be with him wrong.

Many people called the two of you a match made in heaven, and as cliche as it was, you both would smile and nod along with it.

Xuxi worked into the night, determined to make sure that Mr. Park Chanyeol’s car was in full working condition before he returned it to him. It was the least he could’ve done, the older man has helped the both of you so much since you both moved here. No doubt you were already asleep, considering that you had greeted him before going upstairs and that you would have to wake up early tomorrow for work. Xuxi stopped working on the car when he heard scratching at the door. He opened it quickly and Biscuit scrambled out, he bit onto Xuxi’s shirt and tried pulling him inside.

“Whoa, boy, what’s wrong?” Biscuit barked loudly and ran behind Xuxi, trying to push him inside. Xuxi walks inside and looks around at the dark house. “Alright, you’re probably hungry, huh?” Xuxi moves over to the kitchen, but Biscuit runs up the stairs, something that he normally didn’t do. Xuxi followed him up and Biscuit stood outside of their bedroom door, a low growl coming from him. It was then Xuxi noticed that something was wrong. He pulled the screwdriver out of his pocket and twisted open the door slowly, looking around the dark bedroom. You were sleeping peacefully in bed, and everything was still in place. Biscuit bounded in and stared under the bed.

That night Xuxi finally found a purpose for their basement.

~

“We should almost be there,” Guanheng walks in front of you and Xuxi, moving through the corridor carefully. “You still have the key, right?” He asks you. You hold up the keycard and nod. You were almost there, soon enough you’d be back in your bed, sleeping in from work. Soon enough, you’ll be having lunch with Mark again. Soon enough, you’ll be laughing with Yeri. And… you caught yourself and looked behind you. Ten wouldn’t be with you this time. Your best friend would be gone for good once you walked through the entrance.

“Stop right there,” Xuxi pushed you behind him and Guanheng stopped in his tracks.

“Hey… Xiaojun,” Guanheng took a step back slowly. Xiaojun looks past the two inmates and straight at you.

“I thought I told you what would happen if you left,” he frowns. You held the keycard tightly behind your back, you were certain that he hadn’t noticed that you had it, but you knew better than to think that Xiaojun was dumb enough to believe that you just happened to be walking towards the entrance. Xuxi looked at you first.

“What does he mean?”

“If (Y/N) tries to leave the Sector through the entrance I can guarantee you that she will die,” Xiaojun was very visibly pissed, and although Guanheng and Xuxi were confused, they kept their spots in front of you.

“That’s only if the last Major Event happens, Xiaojun!” You argued. “And as you can see, I’m still doing fine,” you pressed. Xiaojun breathed slowly, maintaining his composure.

“That last one is theoretical, we can’t risk you expediting this, (Y/N), we talked about this,” Xiaojun shouts. “We’re wasting time here! Your best bet is the emergency exit!”

“There’s a whole wall of metal blocking the way to the emergency exit, Xiaojun, there’s no way she can get there in time!” Xuxi steps into the argument. “The fastest bet is to get (Y/N) to the entrance and have her leave through there!”

“Exactly! Xiaojun once I’m out of here you guys can use the emergency exit! Ten should know another way to get to it—”

“News flash, Mr. Ex-Warden kicked the bucket five minutes ago!” Xiaojun shouts. “And that idiot Kun went with him because he thought that it would buy me enough time to make sure _you_ don’t go through the entrance!”

“Ten’s dead?! Fat chance, that guy wouldn’t let himself get killed,” Guanheng was next to enter the argument. “The fuck did you do to him?!”

“Me?! I didn’t do jack shit to him, he was the one who tried to kill Kun first!” Xiaojun points down the hall he just came from. “If you don’t believe me I’m 98% sure that their bodies haven’t fully burned yet if you want evidence.” You look down the hall briefly, but turned back to Xiaojun.

“Xiaojun, just let us through,” you spoke calmly, you didn’t want to escalate the situation more than it already had. Xiaojun took a step towards you and Guanheng moved in front of you, putting his hand on Xiaojun’s shoulder.

“Hey, Xuxi and I will make sure she’s safe, you can trust us,” Guanheng, ever the negotiator, gestured for you and Xuxi to run ahead of him. Xuxi took your hand and bolted past Xiaojun, Hendery holding Xiaojun back. Xiaojun turned around and twisted Guanheng’s arm behind his back, and if it wasn’t the crack of bones that resounded over the fire it was the scream that followed it. Then, Xiaojun did something you didn’t expect him to do _ever_. He pushed Guanheng into the fire and pushed a broken pipe through him, keeping him in place. But Guanheng grabbed onto Xiaojun’s ankle.

“Fuck, what’s taking you so long! Run already!” Guanheng shouts. You nodded quickly and Xuxi dragged you away. Then, a loud _clang_ of metal. Again, you and Xuxi turned around just in time to see Xiaojun collapse on the floor, standing over him was an exhausted and horribly bloody Liu Yangyang, clutching onto the same fire extinguisher he had taken from the med bay. He noticed you and Xuxi running off down the hallway and he waved to you both slowly, walking over to Guanheng and pulling him out of the fire.

You wiped the tears from your face with your freehand while you and Xuxi continued to run in a continuous line, never stopping and never taking a break. you had already committed to running away, and you weren’t going to stop now. You pulled each other out of harm’s way and jumped over fissures in the floors of the Sector, keeping your eyes trained forward and focused on the prize at hand. But soon the halls started to narrow, and they started to get slower. Then the end of the corridor was in sight, but it didn’t look like the entrance. You both stopped at the end, Xuxi looked behind the two of you, the blazing corridor the same as when they ran through it, then he looked at the door in front of the two of you.

“This isn’t the entrance…” you huffed, coughing out the inhumane amount of smoke you had inhaled just running here. You squinted your eyes through your spinning vision and stumbled forward, pulling it open, and stumbling inside with Xuxi. You sat against the metal box in the room and laughed sadly. “The emergency exit, this is it. But we have no key to activate it,” you continued to cough and looked at the concrete floors.

“You mean this key?” Xuxi held up the silver key and you felt a wave of relief wash over you.

“Why do you have that?”

“While you were looking around for the others, Guanheng gave it to me, he was afraid that he was going to switch while he had it, so he figured that it was safer with me,” Xuxi says. He had a point, you couldn’t argue with that. You could see Nana just handing the key off to Sicheng if she happened to front, or even Hendery handing it to Kun just because he asked. Xuxi helped you up and handed you the key. You took it slowly and looked at your reflection on it, you almost didn’t recognize yourself, there was no way you looked like this when you first entered the Sector, with the deep eye circles, and the sunken cheeks. You pushed in the key and turned. But it wouldn’t budge. You turned it around the other side, but again it wouldn’t budge. You held onto the side of the box and pushed harder but, again, no change. “Let me try,” you move out of the way for Xuxi and he gives it a shot, but no result.

“Why… why isn’t it working?” You moved away from the box slowly, looking around the room for anything that would work.

“Maybe it doesn’t work with two people…” Xuxi frowns. He pulls the key out of the box and hands it to you. He walks over to the door and rests his hand on the knob and starts laughing. “I don’t want to die.” You looked at him from where you stood. Xuxi rested his forehead on the door, and eventually, he pushed off of it and sat down against the metal box.

“I don’t want to die,” he repeated. You looked at the silver key in your hand and sat next to him. You didn’t blame him, you didn’t want to die either, and you most definitely didn’t want to die alone, and you were sure he felt the same.

“Neither do I,” you whispered. “Do you think it’s the fire or the lack of oxygen that will kill us first?”

“The door was cold so… the lack of oxygen maybe,” Xuxi answers. The two of you sat in silence, not saying a word, but more of accepting your deaths at this point. He takes his necklace off and stares at the two rings on it, you had almost forgotten about it. You unclasped your own locket and cracked it open, letting the tune fill the room. Xuxi turns around slowly. “Where did you… where did you get that?” He asks. You held up your locket and he nods.

“Oh, Ten gave it to me,” you handed it to him and he looked at it closely.

“Huh, that’s funny,” he says. “In my timeline, I gave this exact locket to my wife,” he explains.

“You did?”

“Well, I planned to. There were some complications before I could though,” he continues to observe the locket. “We’re going to die anyway… so I guess I can tell you,” he hands you his necklace, and you look at the rings hanging off of it, they were in perfect condition given the fact that he was in a prison, they almost looked brand new.

“They’re really nice,” you looked at the way the small overhead light reflected off of the silver.

“We were married in my timeline,” Xuxi sighs. “You know, I had this big white wedding planned, but I was never able to pull together enough money to have it. So, in the end, we just had a small one in the local chapel. Couple of our friends came over too, and it was officiated by, guess who, Kun,” Xuxi had a small smile on his lips while he reminisced.

“That’s sweet,” you stared at the wedding bands closer, now knowing their backstory.

“We didn’t even have enough money for an actual dress, so you ended up just borrowing one from our neighbor Irene, and she even let you keep it in the end,” Xuxi continues.

“What about you?”

“I borrowed a suit from our other neighbor… Park Chanyeol…” Xuxi sighs. “He broke into our house and tried to kill you a few months later, by the way.”

“Oh no.”

“Yeah, so I kept him in our basement and starved him.”

“ _Oh no_.”

“Yeah, I don’t know what I was thinking either,” Xuxi shrugs. “We had a dog too.”

“Really?” The mention of a dog caught your attention, you had only seen pictures and videos of the pets, animals of their size weren’t able to live on the moon because of the gravitational force. When you were younger, you remembered telling you dad that if you ever went back to Earth the first thing you’d do was adopt a dog.

“Yeah, his name was Biscuit,” Xuxi rests his head against the metal box. 

“After the children’s book?”

“After the children’s book,” Xuxi chuckles. “You worked as a kindergarten teacher, and Biscuit was dropped off as a puppy in a box in front of your school. You said that as soon as the puppy saw you he didn’t want to leave your side, so you ended up adopting him. The kids were the ones who ended up naming him though.”

“Aww,” you tried your best to picture the scene in your head.

“He saved your life, actually. He dragged me inside after Chanyeol broke into our house,” Xuxi mentions. “He really was a good boy.”

  
“I bet,” you hummed. “What kind of dog was he?”

“Golden retriever.” Xuxi closes his eyes and steadies his breathing. You, on the other hand, did the opposite. You felt your head pound against the front of your skull, actually, it felt more like a jackhammer. You pressed your hand to your head and pressed on it gently, trying to massage the pain out, but it only got worse. You squeezed your eyes shut now, watching the reel of memories cascade throughout your vision. People you recognized in situations you didn’t remember engaging in conversations you couldn’t recall. Places that looked entirely foreign to you, but at the same time places that didn’t scare you in any way. Soon, the migraine subsided, and you were left to stare at the bleak wall in front of you. It took you a few moments to fully register what had just happened, and even a few more to process this new information that settled in your head. You looked next to you at the man who was falling asleep. And you looked back down, now completely grasping the situation you were in.

You’re going to die today.

“Xuxi, are you asleep?” You asked him. No response. You took that as a yes. “You know… I never told you how I got out of the emergency exit the first time, huh? It’s good that you’re asleep, I’m sure you’d laugh at me because of how ridiculous it sounds. But I, quite literally, walked through a door. When I first came in here, there were seven doors in front of me, and I was able to see a small moment from each of the others’ timelines and, you’ll never guess what, but I was in all of them. It shocked me so much, actually. Everyone seemed so different,” you looked next to you to make sure he was still asleep.

“But you surprised me the most, you know,” you continued. “You were so sweet, and I kind of wanted to see if I could see you like that again, so I walked through your door hoping I’d remember something, but I didn’t. Until just now, when you told me about Biscuit. I don’t remember too much, actually, but I do remember going to bed that night, but I don’t remember what happened in the morning. It just sucks that I’m remembering all of this now, right before we die, you know?”

“Yeah, I know,” he answers. You gasp.

“God, you scared me!” You hold your hand to your heart. “Why didn’t you say anything in the first place?!”

“I wanted to hear what you were going to say,” Xuxi opens his eyes. “That’s how much you remember? Nothing after?” He asks.

“Nope, I just remember having to wash Biscuit since he jumped in the mud puddles, and it got all over the bathroom.”

“What did I say when I walked in?”

“I quote, ‘what in the actual ever-loving fuck happened in here?!’” You smiled softly, watching the memory reconstruct itself in your head.

“Oh, you _definitely_ remember then,” Xuxi turned to you, and the realization was clear on his face. “I wonder… even if we were able to escape, I don’t think I would’ve made it.”

“Why is that?”

“Moonsight, remember?”

“Oh, yeah,” you rubbed the silver strands between your fingers. 

“So, out of the seven doors you chose mine?”

“Of course. Xuxi, I thought I told you already, I would, and always will, choose you,” you stood up and pushed the key into the box again, “ and I’d never live with myself if I didn’t follow the ‘third time’s a charm’ rule to the very end,” you say. You almost missed the way Xuxi’s expression melted into one of complete adoration. And he didn’t even question it, after all, it felt like it’s been years since he’s heard you say that. He pushed himself up off of the floor and stood next to you, staring at the silver key expectantly. You held onto it and twisted, a loud _click_ sounding throughout the room. Then, the room filled itself with a bright and blinding light. You shut your eyes and grabbed onto Xuxi’s arm, letting the light and ringing noise fill your head.

~

“Biscuit! No, bad boy,” you picked up the retriever before he could jump into another muddy puddle. “Argh… Xuxi, we really need to fix the sprinklers back here, I don’t even know how Biscuit could get so dirty… bath time for you,” you grabbed the hose and gently washed the mud off of his paws. Xuxi walked out of the shed with gloves and tools in hand while brushing his hand through his dark hair.

“Yeah, I agree, I think I’ve seen one too many muddy footprints,” he sighs.

“Knock knock!” You and Xuxi look over to your gate and Jungwoo waves at the two of you.

“It’s unlocked,” Xuxi calls out while he removes the sprinkler.

“Xuxi and (Y/N), good to see you two,” Jungwoo sat down on one of the chairs.

“It’s cold outside, officer! Do you want me to get you some coffee?”

“Oh, gosh, come on, just Jungwoo’s fine, but I’m alright, thank you, (Y/N),” he laughs awkwardly. 

“How can we help, Jungwoo?” Xuxi pushes the sprinkler back into the ground.

“We just need you both to sign a few papers for the arrest of Park Chanyeol.” He holds up a file and places it on the table next to him.

“Alright, that should be fine,” you turn the hose off and walk over to the file. “What’s all of this for?”

“Just stating that everything you told us was the truth, basic stuff, you know?” Jungwoo hands you a pen while you read it over, and Xuxi watches the exchange.

When the light had subsided, he found himself in his garage again, staring at the red Datsun in front of him. And as soon as he heard Biscuit scratching on the door, that’s when he realized what it is he had to do. He called the authorities before he even stepped back in the house, and within a few minutes they had arrived and Xuxi had informed them that he was in his bedroom. You were, admittedly, embarrassed that you slept through a home invader, but Jungwoo just laughed it off and said that you being safe was what mattered. What surprised Xuxi the most, however, is that you had no recollection of the last timeline whatsoever. Well, consciously you didn’t. Just the other day you were just telling him about this strange dream you had that involved you being trapped in a prison sector, but you couldn’t remember anything else other than the fact that he was in there also. He felt bad for discrediting it to being nothing more than a nightmare, considering everything that the two of you had gone through in Sector V, but he’d rather you not have those traumatic memories in the forefront of your consciousness, knowing you, you’d probably hold yourself accountable to it.

It’s been a few months since then, and Xuxi is certain that you really didn’t remember the events that had transpired in the Sector. That is something he was entirely grateful for, really. It’s been so long that even he barely remembered some details. Though it was strange to see his timeline’s versions of the inmates, obviously just regular people, especially Xiaojun. He felt bad, he was basing his actions based off of inmate Xiaojun, when this timeline’s version of Xiaojun is inherently faultless, and he had even overheard him asking you if he had ever done anything wrong to him. Xuxi was slightly embarrassed when Xiaojun had apologized for whatever he did that was wrong, and he felt even more embarrassed for accepting it. But that would be the closest thing to closure that he’d ever get in this timeline, and he figured that he’d take whatever he got.

“Xuxi! I just need your signature,” Jungwoo calls.

“Right, give me a second,” Xuxi walks into his house and opens the coat closet, pushing aside the scarves and jackets and unlocking the safe he kept hidden inside. Sitting by its lonesome was the silver key that unlocked your escape. He took it out and looked at the burns and scratches on it for a last time. When he heard you and Jungwoo call him again, he made his final decision and shut the safe. Walking over to the family room and tossing the silver key in the fire within the fireplace and walking back outside.

“Has Xuxi been acting strange, (Y/N)?” Jungwoo asks out of the blue. You shook your head.

“Not to my knowledge, no,” you answered him.

“And how about you, how have you been?”

“I’ve been okay, been having a few nightmares since that whole fiasco with Mr. Park Chanyeol, but that’s normal, right?”

“Yeah, I suppose,” Jungwoo nods. “Are they the same nightmares?”

“Kind of,” you sighed. “I feel like they’re all connected, but everything is so loose that I can’t be certain,” you finished signing the papers and leaned into your chair. Truth be told, there was a very distinct connection between all of your nightmares, but part of you was afraid that Jungwoo would laugh at you if you told him, so you kept it to yourself all this time. And you didn’t want to worry Xuxi with your nightmares anymore than you already have, he’s been looking into ways to help you get through them lately, and you were afraid that he’d read too far into it if you told him. Plus, you couldn’t forget the strange look he gave you when you first told him about your nightmares in the prison sector, it almost looked like he himself either recognized or even remembered having a similar experience, but that can’t be true, could it? You thought back to that always present phrase, and it was always said in your father’s voice for whatever reason. You didn’t really want to question it, but it was just so peculiar. You wanted to know who the people were that the phrase was referring to, which was normal right? Even now, the phrase was in the forefront of your thoughts.

**_‘You can only save one.’_ **


	13. Newton [Xiaojun Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 9.6K
> 
> Notes: I’m such a simp for Xiaojun I swear… Also there’s a reason why his ending is a bit longer, and it’s basically because he was so important to the main plot of Zemblanity, not to say that the other inmates aren’t as important, it’s just that… well, you know what I mean. (Spoilers just in case someone decides to read this series now that Xiaojun’s ending is out hehe, so I can’t mention it). Either way, I hope you enjoy this ending!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Violence, Murder, DUI, Car Accident, Death

“Dejun?” You stuck your head into your fiancé’s office. He looked up from his documents silently. Was it weird that his fiancée was still his secretary? Maybe. Was he going to say anything about it? No way. Was he going to fight anyone who questioned it? Definitely.

“Yes, my love?”

“Um… there’s another one of those letters here for you, you know, the ones that have been coming for a while now,” you held up the dirtied envelope and Xiaojun sighed. He recognized the envelope well, as in, there was one that came in every single workday. It got to the point where Xiaojun ended up amending company policy to specify what kind of letters himself and any of the employees are allowed to receive. But, clearly, that didn’t do it’s intended purpose. When Xiaojun opened the first of these letters, it had to have come from a month ago, surely, he didn’t know what to expect, and least of all was he expecting it to be from his “father.” With no return address and only a simple meeting time and place, Xiaojun had reasons to just throw it out. And the one time he had finally given in to meet the old man was when his father had roped you into the whole fiasco, and he didn’t want to put you through any more trouble. He knew that his father just wanted to make amends again, but after meeting so many people, Xiaojun had developed a talent for seeing when people just wanted his money. “I’ll take that as another, ‘just toss that one out too,’ right?”

“Yes, please. I thought I made the company policy clear. No return address, no response,” Xiaojun went back to work on his laptop. About a few weeks ago now he just invited to one of the infamous Mr. Zhang Yixing’s company parties, which was infamously filled with Neo Beijing’s most elite, and he was determined to finally get to work with other corporate powerhouses. Not that he wasn’t already a rather big name himself in this field, what with him inheriting the title of Vice Chairman when he was only seventeen but also holding it for now two years, it was no small feat. Many were afraid of the possibility of the company tanking due to his “lack of experience,” but it proved to be the opposite, actually, the company started to make even more profits. Soon enough he was on the front page of all the big-brand magazines, and now all the big company heads look at him on the same level.

But Xiaojun couldn’t take all of the credit, because behind every transaction and every decision, there was always that one person who would either encourage him or talk him out of it, and that person was Park (Y/N). He had rejected every secretary his uncle had brought his way, but there was something different about you. Maybe it was because you were actually his age, someone working to make up for her mother’s debts and to clear her father’s name, her father who was all too familiar to him for a reason not many would expect, maybe it was that, actually. Maybe he wanted to pay back the man who saved his life when he was so young, or maybe he just liked that you didn’t speak with him with a demeaning and babying tone, maybe it was that. But one thing was clear, you were someone who Xiaojun not only cherished, but you were also someone he highly respected. He always thought his and your story to be rather fantastical, as their lives were interwoven in many ways that he never realized. But that’s a story for another time.

“Oh, one more thing, Dejun,” you stepped into the office and placed a large box on the table. “This is from the PR Team, they asked me to deliver it to you.”

“Liu’s still making you do things for him?”

“You’ll have to forgive him, it’s a force of habit from our younger days,” you laughed. Right, you and Yangyang did grow up together, that’s something Xiaojun couldn’t get used to, after all, the two of you were so different. If he didn’t run into you and your best friend at a bar he’d never have guessed that you were that well acquainted with each other. “But, I’m sure this gift is in good faith.”

“Extend my thanks to Qian.”

“Goodness gracious, you do know that you can just call him ‘Kun,’ right? Weren’t you two school mates?”

“He was my senior.”

“Mmhmm, and?”

“It’s just… it’s unprofessional.”

“And since when did you act _professional_ at all?” You opened the box for him. “Aww, isn’t this sweet,” you pulled out the framed picture from when the PR Team had _miraculously_ convinced Xiaojun to join in on their company “excursion,” as Xuxi put it. A one-night-two-day retreat that you’re certain the team wouldn’t forget in a long time… mainly because Xiaojun and Kun got blackout drunk and passed out in the forest, but you didn’t want to torment your poor fiancé with the memories.

“Why don’t you hang it over there?”

“Yes, boss,” you said in a teasing tone. You hung the frame up. “I’ll go back to my desk now, call me if you need anything, alright?”

“Of course,” Xiaojun watched you leave.

“Wait, hold on!” You stuck your head in again.

“Miss me already?”

“No— Well, yeah, of course I do, but that’s not why I’m back in here,” you laughed when you saw the way Xiaojun’s expression dropped when you first denied him, you did feel a bit bad, certainly, but it was always entertaining to tease him. You held up another envelope, much different to the first one. “I know you specified company policy and all, but it says ‘urgent’ on the front, I really think you should read it,” you walked back to his desk and handed it to him.

“Thank you, I’ll read it as soon as I can,” Xiaojun nods. The office door opens, once again, and Haechan runs in. He looks between the two of you before he runs to you and collapses in your arms.

“Donghyuck! What’s wrong? What happened?” You tried to console the boy.

“It’s horrible! It’s terrible! I can’t believe we let this happen!” He cried.

“Should I call emergency services?”

“You might need to! I think Jaemin’s about to die!”

“Oh my god, what happened?!” You looked at Dejun worriedly.

“The coffee machine broke!” Haechan sunk to the floor and you struggled to keep him up.

“Oh no, did someone piss Johnny off again?”

“If it was I bet it was Mark!”

“I’ll never know what goes on in Marketing…” you shook your head. “I’ll be back,” you waved at Xiaojun and dragged Haechan out with you. The door slammed shut behind you, but Xiaojun could still clearly hear the scene that Haechan was causing, and he couldn’t help but shake his head in mild disappointment. Sure, his employees were… _questionable_ , but they got the job done in the end. Xiaojun stared at the letter on his desk, the red ‘urgent’ stamped across the front. He opened it and read the short sentence at the top of the letter.

To Whom it May Concern:

There has been an 11.6-kWh battery recall due to its combustive tendencies when put under high heat, according to our records, you are in possession of a vehicle that contains this battery, please bring it into the specified dealership to have the battery replaced free of charge.

Xiaojun took the envelope on his desk and observed it again, no return address, no logo, nothing. He couldn’t help but doubt the letter, considering the possibility that it would be fake, but at the same time he didn’t want to be that one person who didn’t take heed of the letter. He pulled out his phone and scrolled down to your contact.

_“Yes, sir?”_

“Meet me at the BMW dealership in the Shunyi District, there’s been a battery recall and I need a ride back to the office once I drop it off.”

 _“Right away, just… let me finish repairing the coffee machine, alright?”_ Xiaojun smiled at your frustrated response.

“Do you need me to come help you, my love?”

 _“No… I’ve got it— What do you mean this part doesn’t go here?! It fits just fine— You know what? Fix it yourself then, Mark!”_ Xiaojun laughed at your sudden outburst. _“Then why even call me?! I’m a busy woman, you know. What, you don’t know how to fix it?! And you assume that I know how to?!”_

“I’m sending repairs and maintenance down, I’ll see you in a few minutes, my love.”

 _“Bye, Dejun— WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOUR REFRIGERATOR IS BROKEN TOO?! IS THERE ANYTHING ON THE TENTH FLOOR THAT WORKS?!”_ You hung up and Xiaojun chuckled again. Always the hard worker and never willing to say you can’t do something, it’s a trait he’s always admired in you, really. Xiaojun pulled his keys out of his suit pocket and tossed them up and down lightly while he entered the elevator, not thinking much of what’s to happen next. Come to think about it, he was going to have to figure out what to wear to Zhang’s party, and he highly doubted that you had something that would perfectly fit the dress code, so he would have to arrange a tailor to meet you within the next week if the two of you were to be ready on time. Not to mention the impromptu board meeting in a couple of days, he had no idea what his uncle was thinking. Then there was the whole rivalry going on with Cypher Industries, the thought alone made Xiaojun’s head spin.

“Oh, hello,” your voice cut into his thoughts. You stepped into the elevator. “Thinking about your schedule again?” You asked him.

“Yes, I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to do all of it without losing my mind,” Xiaojun sighs. 

“If it helps, I already contacted your tailor and he should be arriving around 8:45 in the morning tomorrow to take measurements. I’ve already taken and organized the notes on the state of the company for the board meeting tomorrow including stocks and marketing trends, and,” you pulled your phone out. “I’ve even arranged to meet with Ms. Irene to arrange for my own outfit for the gala.”

“You really do know how to do everything, don’t you?” Xiaojun was impressed, which was something he was always surprised at. After knowing you for how long now, he still found the way you were on top of things to be amicable. He was always good at pretending that he knew what to do, but you always knew what had to be done and how to prioritize. Sometimes he took having a secretary for granted, you did the bulk of the work for him. "Did you end up fixing the coffee machine?”

“Nah, I just left it up to Nakamoto.”

“Why him?”

“Because he was the idiot who broke it,” you rolled your eyes and laughed. “But yeah, so your car battery got recalled?”

“Yeah, that’s what was inside of the ‘urgent’ letter. I was skeptical of it at first but,” Xiaojun checks his watch briefly, “it’s better to be safe rather than sorry, right? The letter said it was free of charge, but even if it wasn’t, it’s not like I can’t afford it.”

“Right,” you nodded your head. You whistled quietly, rocking back and forth on your heels and toes while the elevator descended. Xiaojun checked his watch again, and, as expected, barely any time has passed since the last time he checked it approximately eight seconds ago. 

“Are those new shoes?”

“So you finally noticed! Yeah, they were a gift from Kun, actually.”

“Did I do something to upset you?” He asks.

“Huh? No, of course not,” you shook your head and looked forward. But Xiaojun wasn’t convinced. He thought back to the previous seventy-two hours, trying to figure out if there was something he missed, something he messed up on, perhaps, but nothing comes to mind.

“Kim Yerim, hi,” Xiaojun held his phone up to his ear. “Remember that thing I told you to purchase for me? Right, leave it in front of my car, I’ll go pick it up there, thank you,” Xiaojun hangs up right as the elevator doors open and you both step out into the parking structure.

“Another impromptu purchase, Dejun?” You teased him. Xiaojun walks past you and up to his car, grabbing the white box from on top of it and handing it to you.

“Yerim works fast, I see,” Xiaojun says. You took the box and opened it slowly, immediately pushing it back to him.

“No, I can’t take these. They look like they’re thrice my salary, Dejun.”

“Happy anniversary, my love,” he smiles.

“So you did remember! I was starting to suspect that you forgot considering our anniversary was four days ago,” a small frown formed on your face while you replaced your shoes with the red ones that Xiaojun had bought you.

“Was it really?”

“Yes.”

“I’m so sorry,” Xiaojun ran a hand through his hair. “But that explains why you came home dressed up, doesn’t it?”

“I just went out with Yerim instead.”

“And that explains why she was telling me that this brand was the current ‘it’ brand,” Xiaojun nods his head slowly, piecing the puzzle together.

“You know, for someone so brilliant, you can forget a lot of important things,” you sighed. “But, I forgive you. That day was when you heard about the board meeting and how Cypher Industries suddenly bought out the hotel company we had been trying to negotiate with, so I don’t blame you at all.”

“Next time, just tell me, alright? That’s something rather important, and I feel horrible for not remembering even if all of that happened,” Xiaojun leaned against his car. “How do I make it up?”

“You don’t need to, it’s alright,” you laughed. “I’m just pulling your leg, Dejun, after all, there’s still plenty more to come, don’t you think?”

“That’s true,” Xiaojun looks down at his shoes before looking back up at you. “And I’m guessing that’s the reason why you were wearing these black heels that were probably bought from Macy’s?”

“Hey! They’re cute and they’re comfortable,” you placed the black heels into the trunk of your car.

“And they also happen to be from another man.”

“Aww, Dejun, are you jealous?”

“I could literally buy the entire company those shoes came from, both the brand and the department store. So, no, not quite, but I do find it cute that you tried.”

“And I find it gratifying that I succeeded,” you bopped his nose with your finger and stepped into your car. “You’d better get to the dealership before I do, it will be very awkward for me to stand there any longer without you after I step out of my Honda, you know.”

“Right, of course,” Xiaojun gets into his own car and pulls out of the parking structure, you following behind shortly after.

~

You stumbled out of the door and into a room you didn’t recognize. As soon as you took a step you tripped over a loose wire and fell flat onto the floor. You groaned quietly, clutching onto your now throbbing head. Of all the times to possibly get a concussion, now was probably the worst. You turned over and took deep breaths, trying to maintain your consciousness. Then, something glistened at the corner of your eye, and you would recognize it from anywhere, you reached over to it and held it in your hands. You popped it open and listened to the elegant tune from it, letting the soft sound of Clair de Lune calm you down. But you looked closer at it, something was different about this locket, the engraving was missing.

“Curious…” you mumbled. Your hands grasped at your chest and you pulled out your own locket, it was exactly similar save for the engraving _Domino_. You sighed and clasped the second locket around your neck. You pushed yourself off of the ground and looked around the unknown room, it looked much like a forest to you. With green plants and dark colors, it almost seemed ripped right out of a fairy tale. You walked over to the small water tank, staring at it closely. The water was dark, it was impossible to see inside. “Oh my god!” You flinched back right as someone’s hand gripped onto the side, pulling themself out.

“Jesus Christ!” He drags himself out.

“Xiaojun?!” You help him out of the water while he gasps for air. “What are you doing in here?!”

“Good question,” he looks around. “I don’t remember much after you left the med bay, (Y/N), so you’re going to have to fill me in,” he shakes the water out of his hair with his hand.

“How long were you under there?”

“Not too long, I’m guessing, otherwise I think I’d be dead,” he says. He looks around himself again. “This is Guanheng’s cell,” he mumbles. You look him up and down, trying to find any visible injuries and, lo and behold.

“Xiaojun… your arm…” you whispered. Xiaojun looked down and grimaced.

“Oh, I’m guessing I caught on fire then,” he stares at the burned flesh. “Must’ve been Sicheng who threw me in here then,” Xiaojun shook his head.

“How would you know that it was Sicheng?”

“Well, couldn’t have been Guanheng, the moment Kun pulled him out of the Boiler Room he was already long dead,” Xiaojun shook his head. “Blood loss.”

“Oh,” you looked at the ground. “Do I even want to know what happened?”

“If you want to keep the image of Ten as your best friend who could do no wrong… I think it’s best that I didn’t tell you,” Xiaojun frowns. “How did it come to this? I tried so hard to stop all of the Major Events, but here we are… I don’t know what was worse, what was supposed to happen in TL8 or what’s happening now,” he dips his injured arm back into the water.

“Can you still move it?” You asked. He took his arm out and closed and opened his hand weakly.

“Just enough, at least I know that there wasn’t any nerve damage,” he says. You hold your hand out to him and help him back up.

“So I’m guessing you don’t know how long I’ve been gone either, do you?”

“No, sorry,” Xiaojun walks over to the cell door and opens it, walking out first before you. There were no signs of the catastrophe in this corridor, it looked just as it did when you entered the Sector for the first time god knows how long ago, in fact, if you didn’t know better you wouldn’t have thought that there was a whole emergency occurring in the other side of the Sector at this moment. However, despite the calmness of this side, that doesn’t speak for the rest of the Sector, for all you know, a few sections of the Sector could be burned to ash already. Maybe even a few of the inmates as well, but you chose not to think of it that way, surely there’s at least someone still alive.

“That’s fine,” you nodded your head slowly.

“Did you end up finding the emergency exit?”

“Yeah, it’s at the end of the East Wing,” you followed him down whatever corridor he had chosen to walk down on.

“East Wing?! You’re kidding, right?” He asks. “How… how did you get here then?”

“Uh… I walked out of a door and it led to the inside of Guanheng’s Cell, I suppose… someone did mention that reality works differently in the Sector,” you thought back to the events that led you to this very moment. “I’m guessing we’re in the West Wing then? Kun mentioned that you and Sicheng were looking in this area.”

“Yeah, we’re near the back end. The fire started in the East Wing so it’s not as bad here yet.”

“It’s a good place to rest, until we have to run back into the East Wing to escape,” you looked around the empty halls. Like you said earlier, it looked just like when you first entered. You found it amazing that it was so different from the scene before, and part of you was afraid of what you would find back in the East Wing. You were afraid of who you would see, or who they had become. Then, sure enough, you saw it. The very door that sealed your fate. The entrance to Sector V.

“(Y/N),” Xiaojun’s voice was solemn. You turned to him and he held the red keycard in his hand. “Go ahead.” He holds it out to you, and you stared at it for a while. Then, you took the silver key out of your pocket and held it out to him, but neither of you moved.

“One year, huh?”

“And none of it went according to plan, everything happened similarly to how it did in the previous timeline. Talk about a waste, huh?” He laughed sadly. “The final Major Event hasn’t occurred, and I highly doubt it will, I mean, look at it. The only way for you to break your arm is if someone did it instead.” You looked at the entrance again.

“Yeah, yeah it would,” you turned back to him, but still, neither of you have moved. Why are you hesitating? Now is your chance to finally escape from it all, you can go back home, back to where you belonged. You grabbed onto the key card and held it tightly, but Xiaojun still didn’t let go, even as he grabbed the silver key. You looked up at him again, and you swear you’ve seen this before, you’ve felt this before. He had that same small smile on his face, the one that had enough love for a lifetime. And again, you hesitated.

“What’s wrong?”

“Who _are_ you?” It was a simple question, but both of you knew the weight behind those words. If now was the last time you were ever going to speak to Xiaojun again, you at least wanted to know who the man who was bound to save you was, you both deserved that much.

“Xiao Dejun, in my timeline I was the vice CEO of Dream Launch Industries,” he answers. “But after an incident after one of my colleague’s galas, that was all thrown out of the window,” Xiaojun sighs.

“And now?”

“Just Inmate 1000, nothing more, nothing less,” he says. He let go of the red key, and it felt like a dumbbell in your hands, the worries this card has caused, the pain it held, and the responsibility that came with it. You wanted nothing to do with it anymore. You just wanted it to be gone. You let go of the silver key as well, and you turned around, walking slowly towards the door, but you stopped just a few steps shy.

“Is that all you are? Just an inmate in this godforsaken Sector?” You asked him one last time.

“Pretty much,” he pressed his lips together. “They used to call me the ‘Newton’ of my time, but even geniuses can make life-changing mistakes, as seen in myself,” he says. You nodded again and continued on your way to the front entrance, each step growing heavier. Was it just you or was the hallway getting longer? You felt like you were walking in place, and your vision began fading at the sides. You couldn’t ignore the splitting migraine that started either. Soon, all you heard was your own breathing, and soon, all you saw was someone running straight at you.

“Ten?” You tilted your head and squinted your eyes, trying to focus on who had just exited from one of the side cells. Or, more specifically, what he was holding, but he ran past you and straight for Xiaojun. “Ten! Stop!” You shook yourself out of your senses and followed him, making a mad sprint to catch up to him. You overtook him quickly and skidded to a stop in front of Xiaojun, throwing your arms out to stop him. But Ten grabbed onto your wrist and twisted it _hard_. You were knocked out as soon as you hit the floor.

~  


“Dejun,” your voice cut through the party’s loud atmosphere. Xiaojun turned away from the rather boring conversation he was listening to and put his full attention on you. “Do we know him?” You glanced to your side briefly, and Xiaojun followed your gaze to the man sitting at the bar, two women were at his side, and he was staring right at you.

“No, we don’t,” he answers curtly.

“Well he’s been staring at us for the past half an hour, maybe we should say something to him,” you mumbled.

“No, I’ve heard about him from my colleagues, it’s best if we didn’t associate. Why he’s here at this gala, I’ll never know,” Xiaojun shook his head and wrapped a protective arm around your waist.

“Alright, if you say so,” you glanced at the man again, making accidental eye contact. Xiaojun felt the way you tensed and started scanning the area, wondering if there was another place he could lead you to, far away from the business tycoon who had his eyes on you.

Of course Xiaojun knew who he was. He was a businessman who was known to buy out corporations ruthlessly, rumored to have taken part in the notorious black market, everything to his name was supposedly built on embezzled funds. But what could he do? It was all rumors, nothing has been proven, nothing has been set in stone. And Xiaojun always wondered why? Why did every police investigation into Lee Seunghyun end up unsolved? Or with inconclusive evidence? Xiaojun was always the one to support the benefit of the doubt, but this time, he wasn’t so sure as to what he should do. For now, he’ll follow his instinct, and keep you away.

“Mr. Xiao! I’m so glad you made it,” the man of the hour walked up to the couple with a big smile. “I can’t believe I’ve kept you off of my guest list for so long, tell me, how is Dream Launch Industries? It’s been a while since I worked with your older brother, and the guy to accept my invitations!” Zhang Yixing was certainly a character, at least, that’s what you said. You had researched every person on the guest list prior to the party date, and you have been by Xiaojun’s side telling him what every person was known for and what area of business they specialized in before they decided to engage in conversation with the young Vice CEO. And Zhang Yixing just happens to be one of the most influential people in Neo Beijing. Billionaire philanthropist, not afraid to flex his wealth but only in the best of ways, and not to mention that beneath the glorious facade was a man willing to do whatever is necessary to break through an industry and make as much cash as possible.

“Mr. Zhang, thank you for inviting me to your gala, I appreciate it very much,” Xiaojun shakes Yixing’s hand.

“Oh, you have to come with me and meet a few of my inner circle, they’ve been dying to meet the famously young Vice CEO,” Yixing wraps his arm around Xiaojun’s shoulders and pulls him further into the crowd. You followed along at a reasonable distance until Yixing stopped in his tracks and turned to you. “Sorry, no secretaries,” he looks you up and down and puts on a smile. Xiaojun’s been in this business long enough to tell the real ones from the fake ones.

“She’s my fiancée,” he corrects the older sternly.

“In that case, why don’t you go mingle with the other women? They’re much more interesting than a couple of boys with beers,” Yixing laughs it off and you look over to Xiaojun, but he had already read it in your expression. It was now where he had come to regret telling you how important it was to stay on Mr. Zhang’s good side.

“He’s right, love. You go talk with the others, I’ll be fine,” you yourself put a small and reassuring smile on your face and gestured for him to go. But before Xiaojun could say anything else, Yixing pulled him further into the party and towards even more corporate bigwigs, probably all dying to ask him about how the hell he was able to hold a high position for so long. Xiaojun truly didn’t know how to answer that, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that if he didn’t have you with him he would’ve failed a long time ago. It was you who was helping him all this time, he could barely take the credit. But surprisingly, that’s not what they asked.

“Xiao Dejun,” one of them spoke as if he’s known him for years. “Park Chanyeol, NNG Co., we specialize in motors,” he shook his hand firmly.

“Well, you know who I am,” Xiaojun says awkwardly.

“Of course I know! Who doesn’t know you?! You’re famous,” Chanyeol laughs. “You’ve been in our sights for quite some time, isn’t that right, Minseok?”

“Yes, truly. You’ve got considerable power for your age, and not to mention that brain of yours,” Minseok answers. “I’d love to get to know you more, you’ve got a good head on your shoulders, Newton.” God, it felt like years since Xiaojun had heard that nickname of his. Given to him by his peers and his seniors, it was no secret that Xiaojun was a genius for his age. His teachers begged him to go into a STEM field, but Xiaojun’s brain had always been stuck in business, supply and demand, trends, stocks, literally anything that had to do with it, he knew. Maybe it was just because of his upbringing with his uncle, or maybe it was because he had heard that his father was once a renowned scientist, either way, it’s not something that he had so desired.

“I know they just said it, but I have to be proper,” Yixing hasn’t removed his arm from Xiaojun’s shoulders. “Tall guy over there is Chanyeol, like he said, he’s in the motor business. Usually works with the military and stuff, Minseok here specializes in weapons tech, and Junmyeon is a total beast in the gambling industry.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,” Xiaojun bowed his head slightly, and the group burst out into laughter.

“Aww, don’t be so stuck up. We’re partners now,” Chanyeol roared and slapped Xiaojun’s shoulder. “And partners always help each other out.” Chanyeol took Yixing’s place and turned Xiaojun around, facing him to the crowd. Yixing walked to the other side of Xiaojun and hummed.

“Which one do you want?” He asks quietly. Xiaojun’s face contorted into confusion.

“I’m sorry?”

“Anyone. Guy or girl, we don’t judge. Which one do you want? We’ll send them up to your hotel room tonight,” Chanyeol answers. “Don’t be so uptight, we do this all the time. As long as you have the money, you won’t get caught. And we promise you that we’ll keep our mouths shut.”

“Sorry, but I have a fiancée,” Xiaojun shakes his head and, again, the group laughs.

“Oh, trust me, you’ll grow tired of her soon. We all did, you will too, that’s just how big-name men like us work,” Junmyeon says. Xiaojun shakes off the two men’s hands and bows his head again.

“It was a pleasure meeting you all, but I must return to my office, after all, work never ends,” Xiaojun dismisses himself, walking back in your general direction. He should be mentally beating himself up right now, he just ruined any and every chance he could’ve ever had with some of the biggest names in business, but he couldn’t help but feel kind of… liberated? Is that the word? He was so stressed about seeming professional to his seniors, and now that he saw them for who they really were, he felt a huge weight lifted off of his chest. If he knew every big name was essentially just misogynistic playboys, he would’ve never shown up. Finally, he got to the table the two of you were originally sitting at, but you were nowhere to be found. He looked around the party carefully, surely he should see your head somewhere, his eyes landed on the group of businesswomen, but you were nowhere to be seen. Then he spotted your handbag, all of your valuables were still in it, wallet and cellphone included, nothing has been tampered with. But he knew you better than to just leave it.

“Dejun!” You ran up to him quickly and looped your arm with his. “How was your meeting with the other businessmen?” He knew something was wrong. Your breathing was shallow, every now and then you looked at the door you had just come out of, and your smile was wavering.

“Actually, we’re going home,” Xiaojun nodded his head. Your smile fell briefly, but it came back before it was noticeable.

“Why? Is there something wrong?” Your eyes darted to the exit again, and Xiaojun knew to go the other way.

“I figured that I would better prepare for the board meeting,” Xiaojun tugs you away from the main exit and hands your purse over to you.

“Oh, right, the board meeting,” you nodded your head. Right as you and Xiaojun were about to reach the side exit, Yixing steps in front of him. He eyes you first, before turning back to Xiaojun.

“Leaving so soon?”

“Mr. Zhang, if you would please step aside, I think I’ve had enough of this gala,” Xiaojun kept his voice low. Yixing looks around before handing him four business cards. Xiaojun took them and observed them closely. They were business cards from Yixing, Chanyeol, Minseok, and Junmyeon.

“Congratulations, Mr. Xiao. You’re the first businessman to pass our test. We look forward to working with you in the future, be sure to give us a call,” Yixing pats Xiaojun on the shoulder. “And, don’t worry, Mr. Lee has been taken care of. Ms. Park, I apologize for whatever he put you through, I had no idea that he had shown up. I blacklisted him long ago, I don’t know how he got through security,” Yixing bowed his head to you.

“Oh, it’s alright,” you looked between him and Xiaojun.

“One of my security guards had just informed me, you will be compensated for your troubles,” Yixing bows his head again. “Have a safe trip home. The streets of Neo Beijing are dangerous at this time of night, Mr. Xiao,” Yixing states in a quiet voice.

“We’ll take extra precautions, thank you,” Xiaojun places the business cards into his suit pocket. “It was an honor meeting you, Mr. Zhang.”

“Please, just call me Yixing,” Yixing gives the couple one last smile before leaving, and you and Xiaojun exited the building, stepping out into the chilly night of Neo Beijing.

“What’s this about a test, Dejun?” You asked him.

“Well, when I went to meet them, they acted like narcissistic fuck boys and I decided that I didn’t want to have _anything_ to do with that shit,” Xiaojun shook his head.

“Language! Imagine if your employees heard you curse like that,” you teased him.

“Your turn,” Xiaojun held his hand up and flagged a taxi.

“After you left, the man from the bar came up to me,” you spoke in hushed tones. “He asked about you, and what you did, and I noticed he put something in my drink, and I started panicking. I didn’t want to look suspicious, so I held onto it like normal and pretended to drink it but… you can only pretend to do something like that for so long…” The taxi pulled up to the curb and Xiaojun opened the door for you before walking around and stepping in himself.

“Where to?” The cab driver asks.

“Chaoyang Park,” Xiaojun answered quickly. He leaned back into the seat and brushed his hand through his hair, mussing through it considerably until it fell back naturally.

“I should’ve never left, I’m sorry, my love,” he covered his eyes with his hands and sighed.

“It’s alright, it all turned out for good though, right? We got what we came here for,” you reassured him. “I just have to learn to be more careful next time. We’re bound to be invited to more of these, I have to be more careful, don’t you agree?”

“I’m just glad that nothing happened,” Xiaojun rested his hand on top of yours, and you held it tightly. “I’m sorry, I haven’t been the best fiancé as of late.” You tapped your thumb on his hand softly.

“Well, no, you haven’t been, to be honest. But I get it, you’ve been so stressed lately, and I just want to try my best to help you, Dejun. You don’t have to shoulder the responsibilities on your own, you know. I’m here to support you in every which way,” you said to him.

“What did I do to deserve you?” Xiaojun turned to you. You shot him a smile, but then you looked out his window.

“Stop the car!” You leaned over to the driver, but it was too late.

When the ringing in Xiaojun’s ears subsided, he found himself trapped beneath two maybe three tons of metal. He pushed it off slowly, groaning from the pain in his chest, no doubt half of his rib cage was broken. He limped out of the wreckage over to your side, lifting the cab up just barely off of the floor, enough for you to crawl out yourself. You were in worse condition, that much was clear. Xiaojun looked to the sidewalk and noticed a horrified shopkeeper with their phone against their ear, hopefully calling emergency services. Xiaojun helped you up and guided you away from the wreckage, narrowing his eyes on the person who T-Boned them.

“What the fuck’s your problem?!” Xiaojun shouts. The man got out of his car, a bottle of brandy in his hands.

“Oh! Mr. Xiao Dejun!” He already knew who this was. “And… ugh… what was your name again?”

“Shouldn’t matter to you,” Xiaojun grimaced. Seunghyun smashed the bottle against his car, the flames beneath it growing stronger once the alcohol came into contact with it, and he swung it towards the couple.

“You… fucking wretch… ruined my night,” he pointed the broken glass towards you. “I was just having some fun, and you fucking ruined it!” He lunged towards you and Xiaojun pulled you out of the way.

“Let’s all calm down,” Xiaojun mutters. “None of us are in proper condition,” he began to fight his dizzying senses.

“Fuck off, good for nothing trust fund kid,” Seunghyun blabbered out. He turns towards you again. “Fucking bitch… stuck up, good for nothing…” he lunged forward again, and the bottle embedded itself into your already bleeding chest.

Xiaojun saw red. That was it. And when he finally came back to his senses, he was in a holding cell.

~

You sat up slowly, rubbing your eyes and waiting for them to adjust to the light again. You felt like you had been asleep for ages, your head still hurt more than if someone dropped a grand piano on it, and you were still trying to process and file through your newfound memories. They were all so clear to you, but at the same time they were so foreign, they felt like they weren’t yours despite it being _you_ who had experienced them. But you couldn’t explain this relaxed feeling that you had, like everything suddenly had just made sense, it was like you had completed a puzzle, and now you could see the bigger picture of it all. 

“… (Y/N)?” The voice seemed distant. Your eyes focused on the figure in front of you.

“Sicheng…” you were relieved, at least it was the face of someone you trusted. You looked around yourself, you were in the med bay now. “Where… where’s Xiaojun?”

“He woke up a while ago and is looking for the others,” Sicheng explains. “You both were in bad condition, though,” he says. He glances down at your arm.

“Oh no…” you looked at the messy sling.

“I’m sorry, none of us are actually medically trained… so I did my best,” Sicheng rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “But you know what this means, right?”

“Yeah… I’m basically fucked,” you ran your hands along the bloodied bandages. You couldn’t believe that Ten, of all people, did this. What happened to the person who was supposed to be your best friend? Why would he do this to you? You shook your head and slumped your shoulders. Was it even worth escaping anymore? You should just die in here with the other inmates at this point, it’s the end of the line for you. “How are the others?”

“Well… Xiaojun told you about Guanheng, right?”

“Yeah…”

“Well… he and Xuxi I know for sure are… gone,” Sicheng looked at the door. “Ten was in pretty bad condition when I found him, but I left him to Kun since he told me to. And I have no clue where Yangyang is, I’m just hoping that Xiaojun doesn’t run into him, because… well, you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, I do,” you swung your legs over the bed and stepped back onto the floors. “But there’s no point in just waiting here to die, right? Let’s go find Xiaojun and try to get out of here.”

“Agreed,” Sicheng walks ahead of you, pushing the door open into the East Wing. “He went further down towards the end of the East Wing, so if we follow this path we should find him eventually,” Sicheng explains.

“Sounds good,” you trudged on, keeping your broken arm away from the flames as best you could. You were surprised that the Sector hasn’t fully shut down yet, but then again, you’d never know how this place works, and you had no will to figure it out. The sooner you were out of here, the better. You had no qualms with the Sector burning down at this point, you just wanted to be sure that you were out of it as soon as it happened. But the further you got into the East Wing, the harder it got to breathe or see at all. You were starting to worry for the worst, you should just turn back at this point, accept the slow death. But you were worried for Xiaojun, you wondered where he was, and with your new found memories, you hoped for the best. “Xiaojun!” You cupped your hands and screamed into the fire, hoping for a response of some kind. And Sicheng followed your actions, looking for the lost inmate alongside you. Sicheng suddenly pushed you forward and into one of the corridors.

“What’s wrong?” You tried to look behind him.

“Ten.”

“Maybe I could—”

“Don’t even think about talking to him, I’m pretty sure that he’s not even the same person anymore,” Sicheng frowns. “I’ll buy you some time, alright? Just find Xiaojun and get out of here,” he hands you the silver key.

“Why do you have that?”

“Xiaojun… Xiaojun said that he might not make it back, and he told me that if an hour has passed and he still wasn’t back to take you to the emergency exit myself,” he says. You were about to retaliate when he shook his head. “It’s been three, (Y/N). Maybe you’ll find him, maybe you won’t. But when you get to the emergency exit and when you get out of here… don’t forget us, okay?”

“How could I?” You frowned. You knew the was probably the last time you’d be speaking to the inmate.

“That’s true, with all of the trauma that came from this place, I’m sure you’ll never forget us, even if I wanted you to,” Sicheng smiled weakly. “Keep going down the hall, I’ll hold out as long as I can, but in return, you have to make it home.”

“I will.”

“Oh, and before I go,” Sicheng hugged you tight. “Thank you… for not giving up on me.”

“Of course… don’t die.”

“I won’t,” he lets you go and ushered you forward. “Bye, (Y/N).”

“Bye, Winwin,” you watched him leave before you turned around and ran forward, keeping Xiaojun in your mind. You were going to find him, dead or alive, you were going to find him. You picked up the pace, a new surge of adrenaline coursing through you while you looked under rubble and threw open doors, you called out his name as many times as you could, but they never got an answer. You had to have run all throughout the East Wing already, but still, he was nowhere to be seen, not to mention that you have yet to find the emergency exit itself either, you were starting to lose hope.

“(Y/N)!”

“Kun!” You ran up to him. “You’re still alive?”

“Thank god, I didn’t think I could handle any more deaths today,” Kun shook his head. “Look, we don’t have a lot of time, (Y/N). Xiaojun’s in trouble, and I have to get to the Warden’s Office to activate the emergency protocols. He’s just down the hall. I promised to come back for him, but I don’t think I’ll make it in time. (Y/N), you can handle it, right?”

“Yeah, yeah I can,” you looked around him. “Yeah, I can handle it.”

“Okay, alright, where’s Sicheng?”

“He’s with Ten…”

“He’s still alive?” Kun mumbled it under his breath, but you heard it loud and clear. “Okay, be careful.”

“I will, you be careful too.”

“Yeah, I’ll see you later,” he claps your shoulder and runs past you. You ran down the hallway, keeping your eye out for the silver-haired inmate.

“Xiaojun!” You called out again. Then, you found him. You ran over to the pile of metal and pipes and started pulling it out.

“Kun?” Xiaojun’s voice was weak.

“(Y/N). How did you get in this?!”

“I was looking for the emergency exit… and got caught in this… Kun found me earlier, but I told him to go away…” Xiaojun mutters.

“He told me that he had to activate the emergency protocols,” you pulled a piece of metal away from the pile, ignoring your burning hands.

“Yeah, I lied to him. I just didn’t want him to die here,” Xiaojun lied down on the ground, completely defeated.

“So that’s it then?”

“What?”

“You’re just going to die here then? You’ve completely given up?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”  


“Why?!” You continued to pull the rubble off of him. “You worked so hard to escape and now that you have a chance you’re throwing it away!” You shout.

“I’ve been up and down the East Wing and I couldn’t find the goddamn emergency exit, okay?! I’m convinced that it decided to close itself off once the temperatures got too high in the Sector or some bullshit like that,” Xiaojun argues. “Just leave me. Go find the others and die with them or something.”

“What the _fuck_ is wrong with you?!” You kicked his leg and he winced. “You’re so infuriating sometimes, Dejun! You literally have all of the cards in your favor right now and you’re throwing them all away!”

“What… what did you just call me?”

“Ugh, what was I thinking?” You wiped the sweat from your forehead. “I remember you, Dejun. That time by the entrance, you said something and it brought all of my memories back, and now I remember everything. Dejun, we can fix this! I know where the emergency exit is, so if you would just _cooperate_ we can get out of this shithole and go back home! Dejun, I remember who you are. Don’t you get what I’m saying?! We’ll get a second chance, we can go back home, we can pick up your dumb car from the dealership, you can burn those black stilettos Kun got me from Macy’s, we can go back _home_ , like what we were _supposed_ to do, please, let’s just go home, Dejun,” you plead. You had to admit, you sounded so pathetic right now, but you couldn’t help it. With the weight of everything that had happened in this timeline, and what had happened in the past, the wave of emotions that fell over you was just too much to handle all at once. You grabbed a large sheet of metal and threw it off the pile. Xiaojun stared at you, seemingly comprehending every word you were saying. Then he pulled his arms out from under the burning sheets of metal and tried to push himself up. He grabbed onto your arm and you both worked to get him out.

“You… you really do remember me…”

“You look _horrible_ , Dejun.”

“I know… it’s the first and second-degree burns…”

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” you coughed into your shirt.

“Let’s go, we don’t have time to get the others.”

“I know, I know,” you thought back to the other living inmates, you felt bad for leaving them, but Xiaojun had a point, there was no way you could get back to them in time to save them. You took Xiaojun’s hand and dragged him down the hallway, you knew just where to go to get to the emergency exit, it was like it was engraved into your head. You could see the pathway clearly, and finally, you came to a stop, and you pulled the door open and you both ran in. Without another word, you shoved the key into the metal box, twisting it without hesitation. You heard a click, and the room filled itself with a bright white light.

~

“Thank you, Yixing, I will call you back as soon as I read over the papers,” Xiaojun waited for Yixing to hang up before putting his own phone down on his desk. He’s been working from home, as of late. What, with the raging pandemic going on in the world, one could never be too careful. He ended up signing a joint contract with Yixing in order to work for a cure, and so far the partnership has been nothing but beneficial, and many people in the world are looking forward to what they will accomplish towards the cure. But he had to admit that working from home was a bit harder than in the office, and he missed having face to face interactions with his staff, but safety always comes first.

“Dejun?”

“Finally awake, my love?” He turned to you slightly, and you saw him smile from his desk.

“Mmhmm, I just had the strangest nightmare,” you mumbled. “I don’t remember much of it… though… but… don’t call me weird, but I swear I saw Yangyang beating you up in it.”

“I don’t doubt it, I’m sure he would if I wasn’t his boss,” Xiaojun laughed.

“No, but… I don’t know how to explain this… we were in a boiler room of some sort,” Xiaojun froze. “Dejun?”

“Nothing, sorry, something just caught my attention,” he stood up from his desk and pushed the chair in, walking over to the bed and sitting next to you. He smoothened out your messy hair. “There you go.”

“If it was just that, you could’ve just told me,” you yawned. “I feel like I’ve been asleep for ages.”

“That’s probably because it’s four in the afternoon, my love,” he brings you close to him and holds you securely in his arms.

“Is it really? Goodness… I didn’t mean to sleep that long,” you rubbed your eyes and stared at the wedding ring on your finger, and you held onto his hand, playing with the ring around his. A soft smile etched itself onto your face, and it was the same one Xiaojun would never get tired of seeing. It was the same one that made him fall in love with you over and over again. It was so sweet, so innocent, he couldn’t get over it at all, and now it was all his. He rested his chin on your head while he cradled you to his chest, softly lulling you back to sleep.

It’s been about five months now, since the whole thing that happened in the Sector, or at least, Xiaojun thinks that it has been five months. When the light had subsided, he was in his office again, staring at the recall notice on his desk, unopened and untouched. He ended up calling the dealership and asking about it, and according to them there was no such recall, nor did his car even run on that battery at all, and with that, he tossed the letter into the shredder and didn’t think about it again. Other than that, he really couldn’t remember the last time he thought about the Sector until now. Until you mentioned your nightmare, he had thought that you didn’t remember a single thing about the Sector, but clearly there was something in your subconscious that reminded you of it every now and then. He just felt terrible that it was through night terrors, but he preferred that over the mental trauma that would come with you remembering the whole ordeal yourself. Xiaojun came to terms with your amnesia as a blessing in disguise, he’d rather hold onto the trauma himself than make you go through it. Xiaojun genuinely felt that if you weren’t here with him he would’ve had a harder time coming to terms with what happened in the Sector, and all the people he had left behind in order to take you with him. He felt you relax in his arms, and he laid you back down on the bed. The both of you had fallen asleep rather late last night, and he didn’t judge you for being so tired. When he was certain that you were asleep, he leaned over to his nightstand drawer and pulled out the silver key, not paying any more attention to it as he should, he pocketed it, put on his mask, and walked out of his bedroom. He entered the elevator of his penthouse and moved to the ground floor and waited for his guest.

“Mr. Xiao!” Yangyang waved his hand quickly and placed his mask back on once he noticed Xiaojun walking over to him.

“Yangyang,” Xiaojun walked over to him and handed him the key.

“What’s this, boss?”

“Just something I need disposed of,” Xiaojun explains. “Do what you want with it, I really don’t care. I just don’t need it in my house anymore.”

“Sounds good, boss,” Yangyang fake salutes and pushes the key into his pocket. “Tell (Y/N) I said ‘hi’ for me!”

“Of course, she hasn’t spoken to you in a while, so I’m sure she’ll appreciate it.”

“What? She’s the one not responding to my texts,” Yangyang pouts. “But, I’ll take your word for it. I’ll see you in the next zoom call, boss!”

“Until then, Yangyang,” Xiaojun waves at him until he exits the building.

Yes, it’s better this way. It’s better that you didn’t remember the Sector and all the people you met in there, it’s better that you didn’t have to remember any of that. It certainly made the job easier for Xiaojun, but he couldn’t lie, he felt bad whenever he saw his timeline’s versions of them, he felt that wave of guilt, and he was sure you noticed it too, he was afraid that you noticed it too. But, even if you did, you never mentioned it to him for whatever reason. And he was thankful that you didn’t, there was no way he could describe what he was feeling to you and still sound like a sane man.

But he was glad that his scheme worked out in the end.

It all went flawlessly, everything went according to his plan. Every person thrown under the bus, every person killed, and every event that has occurred, he was surprised that it happened so seamlessly, even the fact that you didn’t remember the events in the end. He had Kun to thank for that, he played right into his trap and, in the end, Xiaojun came out victoriously.

Oh how he wished he could see Ten’s face now, the disappointment and the fear that must be etched onto his face, Xiaojun’s only regret was that he didn’t get to see it before he left the Sector with you. He’s certain that if he got to see it he would’ve laughed at the distraught on the previous Warden’s face, he would’ve broken all composure right then and there, so maybe it was a good thing that he didn’t get to see him.

Xiaojun knew that this feeling would’ve been the most gratifying one he’s ever felt, and he reveled in it. After all, he won. Any person would celebrate over that, right?

You, meanwhile, laid in bed alone. You thought back to you nightmare, or nightmares, to be specific. They all seemed tied together, like they’re part of a narrative that you should recall to some extent, but nothing was familiar to you, no. All you had to go off on was one line that you just _knew_ came from your father, but you had no clue what to make of it at all, nor were you willing to find out what it meant period, but you would be lying if you said that it didn’t haunt you.

**_‘You can only save one.’_ **  



	14. Ironwood [Sicheng Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 9.7K
> 
> Notes: Half way through endings and I’m feeling sentimental T-T I’m going to miss this series so much, it was so fun writing it and talking to everyone about it, you guys really are the best community here, you’re all so sweet and I’m sad to see this series go! But I’m sure we’ll all have fun again in the future, and, who knows, maybe I’ll try another darker concept in the future? Zemblanity was so fun, but also so challenging, to write, hehe. And I’ll admit a lot of things have changed within the development of Zemblanity as well, but I’m still thankful for the turnout, hehe. But enough talking! I hope you enjoy Sicheng’s ending for Zemblanity!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Violence, Murder, Knives, Mentions of Suicidal Thoughts

“Sicheng!” Sicheng’s ears perked up when he heard you calling his name. He finished polishing his motorcycle and tossed the dirty rag onto the table before he walked outside of the garage.

Sicheng had been staying in the room above the garage for about a year and a half now, he was lucky enough that the garage’s owner was reasonable and let him stay for that long, but he was determined to pay back his dues. He earned his stay by working in the garage, but when it came to paying off _that_ debt, he was on his own. He was juggling two jobs, not including this one. One of these jobs was a basic one at the local hardware store and the next one was a dishwasher at his friend’s restaurant. Both of them were minimum wage, but he’d take whatever he could get, as long as he got _that_ debt paid off before the deadline, that’s all he could ask for. He didn’t mind working 24/7, he could care less if he was tired or if he felt like he was on the brink of collapsing, he just wanted to get _it_ over with and done for. By any means necessary.

But you, you on the other hand… he’d make sure nothing ever happens to you. You were the one thing in his miserable life that gave him hope, you were the person who loved him unconditionally, and he’d be damned if he couldn’t say the same on his end. The two of you together would always end in some sweet exchange, the same exchange that would keep Sicheng going. He loved you with all of his being, and he hoped that you would say the same. It was incredible, the effect you had on him. Just one smile from you and he could feel all of his troubles melt away. Even just a glance, and he’d feel like he’s in the safest of spaces. He loved you. That much was apparent, and that much would never change, no matter what happened in this world, you would be the one person he’d always come running for.

“(Y/N), what are you doing here?” He asks. He runs a messy hand through his short hair and adjusts his eyes to the sunlight. You handed him a small basket.

“My dad made some extra sandwiches, so he figured that I could bring some to you,” you answered him. Sicheng opened up the basket slowly and saw that there were two sandwiches inside.

“Thanks,” he placed it down on one of the tables and pulled over a stool for you.

"How are you feeling, Winwin?” You perched yourself onto the wooden stool and crossed your ankles.

_Winwin_. That ridiculous nickname you gave him that he just couldn’t get over. Even the story behind it was ridiculous. That night you met, in a bar just down the street of where you both were standing right now, he had kept getting straight wins in a rather boring game of poker, and you had seen it yourself. When you walked over and watched him play, you were rather impressed, and you had challenged him to one game. Of course, since he was still riding off the high of who knows how many consecutive wins, he accepted and went all in, but ultimately lost. After that exchange, he was about to return home with an empty pocket, but you caught up to him and gave him back all of his earnings. He still remembered what you said that day: _“I just wanted to have some fun, here, you can have these back, Winwin!”_

The name used to bother him so much. Every time you would cross paths, you’d shout it at the top of your lungs and wave your hand furiously, and he would always be so embarrassed when it would happen. But slowly, as the two of you got to know each other more, he started getting more endeared by it. It was rather ironic, though. He’d always win, but when it came to you, he’d always lose. It could be anything, poker, billiards, game of war, or even go fish, he’d always lose if he was playing against you, and he wasn’t even trying to go easy. There was just something about you that he could never beat. And he had to admit, it was the source of some insecurities, especially when the relationship first started, and even now. Was he really worthy of you? Of all things that had to do with you? He really didn’t know.

“I’m feeling okay,” he grabs onto the toolbox and places it next to his motorcycle. “As for this motorcycle… I think it’s seen better days,” he knocks on the dented metal. You hopped off of the stool to observe it.

“Just needs a new engine, I think,” you mumbled. “But that’s rather expensive, isn’t it?”

“Mmhmm,” Sicheng hummed. “I mean, it’s working fine, it just burns up gasoline faster than it should. But other than that, it’s functional.”

“That’s good,” you stood back up and moved back onto the stool, silently watching Sicheng work.

Truth be told, before you got here, he wasn’t feeling all that good. He had chalked it up to the exhaustion, and he kept himself working by constantly reminding himself of the debt he had to pay. He only had two more months to gather enough funds, and he had barely even saved up half of what he needs. He was thankful enough to you and your father for helping him out, providing meals and basic necessities, but he was still rather concerned. He couldn’t freeload off of the two of you forever, he had to pay at least your father back at some point.

He could never forget the embarrassment he felt when he first brought up his situation to your father. You had already been dating for quite some time before, and he couldn’t believe how irresponsible and naive he was. He was just so desperate to be back in his parents’ lives he didn’t even think twice about their own debts, and he had expected least of all that it would be him who would’ve had to pay it back. He was slightly ashamed about what his parents had done, taking out so many loans from those shady loan sharks, he’d never know why they had to do it, nor does he care. Now he’s the one suffering while they waste away in a nursing home somewhere. A nursing home that he _also_ has to pay for.

“If you want, I think my dad could find you a new engine?” You offered. Sicheng looked up at you from his spot on the ground.

“No way, no one makes Ironwoods like these anymore. And if they did, they would be worth way too much,” Sicheng frowns. “I should just scrap this, at this point. It’s too old to be reliable.”

“Mmhmm, so how are you going to get around, then?”

“Public transport?”

“You hate public transport.”

“I know, but I’ll just have to get over it,” Sicheng sighs. He stares at the tank. He had enough fuel for one trip to the next city over, but not enough for a return trip, and he couldn’t even consider refilling the damn thing. He glanced over to you again, you were preoccupied with your phone, probably texting your best friend, but still, you took the time to be here with him. You could’ve been sitting in your best friend’s apartment under some decent air conditioning, but instead, you chose to sit in this oven of a garage with a crude ceiling fan, just to be here with him.

He really regretted what he was about to do.

“Hey, (Y/N)?”

“Yeah?”

“Uh… let’s go for a ride,” he hands you a helmet. You took it and slid it over your head, attaching the chin strap and adjusting it accordingly. It was strange, and it made Sicheng feel even worse for what he was about to do. You trusted him with everything, and he trusted you with everything. Why did it have to be like this? Sicheng nodded his head and walked over to the side to grab his helmet, but when he picked it up a note fell out. He picked up the sealed note, opened it slowly, and read what was written on it.

_‘Don’t do it.’_

Sicheng stood up and looked around, crumpling the note in his hand and tossing it in the trash. Who left that note? Who knows? Who was it? Sicheng turned around and looked outside, there was no one in their general vicinity, no one would be walking around in this unnecessarily overbearing heat, let alone at this time of night. He walked out of the garage and looked down both ways of the street. No one.

“Sicheng? What’s wrong?” You asked him from inside. Sicheng walked back into the garage and shook his head.

“Nothing, I thought I heard something,” he lies. He puts his own helmet on and gets onto the motorcycle first. “Ready?”

“Always!” You climbed on behind him, locking your hands securely around his body. Sicheng took a moment for himself, this would be the last time he’d feel your arms like this, wouldn’t it? This was the last time he’d feel your warmth around him. And he couldn’t help but second guess himself, did he really want to do this?

He started the engine and drove off into the street, knowing exactly where to go.

It was quiet.

Which was strange, he knows, but that’s it. It was quiet. Despite the way the wind blew around him, despite the way the city lights around him rushed past his vision, it was quiet. Sicheng was, for once, at peace. The scenery around him was calming to him. It was time, he had to do this, he had to do it for you. He ascended the hill like he had done so many times before. This place has seen so much, the beginning, the middle, and soon it will complete its rule of three. He stopped the engine and you both walked up to the fence overlooking the city.

“It’s so beautiful tonight…” you mumbled. Oh god, don’t do this. Don’t do this to him. “Sicheng, come here,” you reached out for him. He looked down at your hand, if he took it now, that would be it. He wouldn’t be able to go back from there. He walked past it and stood next to you. He looked at you fully, he committed every detail to memory. Your height, your clothes, your hair, your eyes, he studied it the same way a student did a textbook the night before a test. It’s not like he had to, he would… could never forget you. But you noticed that something was wrong, something was amiss with him, and he always knew exactly when you found out that something was wrong. It was the way your eyebrows knitted themselves together, it was the way the corners of your lips moved only slightly downward, but most of all it was the way your eyes changed. They always seemed like they got more mesmerizing when you knew something was up, he could see the way you were thinking behind them. “Sicheng, what’s wrong?” Your hand began to move up to his face.

“I’m breaking up with you.”

Your hand stopped just before it reached him, and it fell to your side.

It was like glass shattering, that was the look behind your eyes. He saw a range of emotions behind it all within a few seconds. Confusion, sadness, anger, despair, resentment, uncertainty, and finally sorrow.

He did it.

He really said that.

But _god_ , if only you knew what happened to him the moment the sentence left his lips. He himself felt his heart rip into two, and when he saw the look behind your eyes he felt those glass shards behind them pin into the already pathetic pieces of it. He loves you, and he’ll never stop. But this is for you. This is for you. He had to keep reminding himself that. This is for you.

_This is for you._

“Why?” You asked him. He couldn’t answer that, he didn’t have the will to, and he thinks that if he tried to explain he’d take it all back and ask you for forgiveness. “Sicheng. _Why_?”

“I…” that’s when they heard a gunshot sound, and a bullet shot right in between them. Sicheng turned his head first, but it was you who pulled him out of the way. Sicheng was able to catch a glimpse before you both ducked under the fence.

“Who was that?!”

“Lee Taemin,” Sicheng answers. “We have to run, now.” He steals a glance over the fence to see if Taemin was still there and, sure enough, he was waiting for the two of you to arrive. When Sicheng lowered himself back down he saw you texting your father.

“Don’t,” he put his hand over yours, but you had already sent the message. Sicheng lets out a frustrated sigh and looks over again. “Fuck… I still had two months, why’d he come now?!” He digs his hands in his hair and you moved in front of him, holding onto his wrists.

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” you tried to reassure him. “Breathe, Sicheng. We’ve got this handled,” you assured him.

How could you be so angelic? Even in this situation, you still tried your best, and he had always envied that about you.

“No, (Y/N)… I can’t…” Sicheng frowns.

“Why?”

“Because he’s here for _me_.” Your grip on his wrists softened for a brief moment, but you tightened them again, moving his hands away from his head.

“We can figure this out,” you reiterated. Now it was your turn to look over the fence, but as soon as your head came into view, Taemin shot again. Sicheng pulled you back down.

“Remember when I said that my parents owed someone money?”

“Is it him?”

“No, but it’s his boss,” Sicheng explains hurriedly. Then you heard the sirens. You stood up to see the scene, but Sicheng held you down firmly.

“Sicheng! (Y/N)!” Your dad called you from the fence, you both looked up while he made sure the scene was safe. “You two get out of here while you can, I’ll question you both later, meet me at the station!”

“Yes, sir,” Sicheng grabbed your arm and you both made a beeline for the motorcycle. Sicheng kicked the side to get the engine running and you both sped away from the scene, paying no attention to whether or not Taemin was restrained or not, the only thoughts shared between the two of you were escaping. He was at the intersection now, he had a choice now. If he went straight, he would be going to the one place he had meant to, but if he turned right then…

“Sicheng!” You spoke over the wind. “Why are we going this way?” Sicheng saw the police station disappear slowly from his mirror. He didn’t answer you and stayed on his track, and finally, he stopped in a familiar parking lot. You got off first, taking your helmet off and looking up.

“Sicheng, what’s wrong? Why are we here?” You were still processing what just happened on top of that hill.

“I have to go,” he shakes his head.

“Sicheng, wait, let’s talk about this.”

“(Y/N),” it came out sterner than he intended it to. “We’re through. Just leave me alone,” he straps his helmet back on and pushes you off the bike, leaving without letting you say a word. He made a quick wrap around the block and watched you from a safe distance. The apartment door opened and Yangyang walked out, looking around you before settling on you. Sicheng couldn’t hear a single word exchanged, but he had a really good feeling of what it was.

This was for you.

~

When you walked out of the door, this was the last place you had expected to see. The Interrogation Room seemed a bit more menacing today than you had remembered it. Was it the static playing on all of the screens? Was it the sound of the tapes rolling but with nothing to play? You didn’t like it. You didn’t like where you were, you knew there was something wrong. You were still in the Sector… right? You walked up to the door and tried to turn the knob, but it wouldn’t budge. Then you heard something spark behind you. You turned back and saw a screen sitting on the table now, playing the tape from TL8.

_“Mr. Warden, it’s not my fault she got locked in the interrogation room.”_

You felt your legs buckle beneath you, but you held onto the door handle to keep yourself upright, you were certain that this time you weren’t alone. But no matter where you turned, you were met with absolutely nothing. Everything pointed to you being the only person in this room, and it just made sense, right? You crouched down to the floor, covering your ears and shutting your eyes. Maybe if you willed it enough you’d be able to block out the noise. Is this it? Is this how you die? In this dumb, godforsaken Sector?

“(Y/N).”

“Yangyang?” You looked up. “What are you doing in here?”

So you were right. You weren’t alone. You didn’t dare ask him where he came from. There was something different about him, this time. There was something rather _off_ about him, this time. He pulled your locket from under your shirt and observed it quietly.

“Where did you get this?” He asks. You move away slowly, but as soon as he realized your intentions he held onto the locket with a vice grip and tugged you forward. “Answer me.”

“It was in the Warden’s Office,” you reached up to your neck and unclasped it, letting Yangyang take it in his grasp.

“It was that _fucker_ Xiaojun, wasn’t it? God, he’s always in my way,” Yangyang shouts. He messes up his hair and shouts. You take another step back, you were already fearing the worst.

“Yangyang, you need to _calm down_!” You tried to urge him, but he wasn’t taking that for an answer, no, he wouldn’t.

“And you… you’re a fucking _traitor_ , aren’t you?! I saw you and Sicheng talking to Kun and Xiaojun! You said you were on our side!” He raises his voice. “How many times do I have to tell you that he’s no good for you, huh?! He’s a piece of shit, (Y/N), and I’m sick of having to deal with your heartbroken ass every time he fucking yells at you!” You flinched back. What the fuck was he talking about?

“Yangyang, you’re not okay! Take a second to breathe—”

“I am okay!” He snaps. “But you… how could I not have seen this? You’re not okay, (Y/N). No, but it’s okay… I can fix that.”

  
If it wasn’t clear before… it is now. You had to get out of here. You jumped to the door and pushed on it, trying to unjam the doorknob, but Yangyang wasn’t going to let you go that easily. Of course he wouldn’t. He grabbed onto your arms and dragged you back, grabbing the handcuffs on the table and cuffing you to it.

“You’re going to stay _right there_ while I go and kill half of this goddamn Sector!” Yangyang shouts. He opens the door with ease and storms out, but you couldn’t relax. Not yet. You tugged on the metal chains, trying your best to break out of it.

“Who am I kidding…” you slumped to the ground, not bothering to gather enough energy to try anymore. You hugged your knees to your chest and rested your forehead against them. It was time for you to admit this wholeheartedly, you were so _tired_. You were certain that if you went to sleep right now you’d never wake up again, be it because you burn to death or you suffocate on smoke, you didn’t really care at this point. You were so _through_ with everything, and now you were certainly going to live out your last moments in this room, and you were fucking terrified. “I don’t want to be alone…” you cried softly. Why were you in this mess again? Why couldn’t you have just gone back to sleep that night? Ten wouldn’t have become a murderous psychopath, you’d still be hanging out with Mark and Yerim like usual, you wouldn’t have to worry about getting _killed_ by an inmate either. Why’d you throw all of that away? Just for a dream? A _fucking dream_? Was it worth it, (Y/N)?

The door opened again, but at that point, you had already resigned yourself to your fate. You didn’t care who it was, and you didn’t care what they said to you.

“Oh, thank god I found you.” It was Sicheng. “Are you… no, you’re not alright, are you?”

“No.”

“Yeah, figured as much,” he walked over to where your hands were attached to the table, “this is going to hurt a little.” He wrapped his hand around your wrist, holding the steel cuff in place, and with his other hand held the area where the chain attached.

“What are you doing?”

“Just think of something else,” he says. He jerked your wrist away from the table and he broke the chain easily. “You good?” You brought your now free hand in front of you.

“Yeah, sure,” you mumbled. Sicheng moved and sat next to you. “We’re going to die here, aren’t we?”

“Realistically, probably,” Sicheng frowns, “but that’s only if we don’t make it to the emergency exit on time.”

“Yeah, that’s not happening,” you muttered.

“What? Why?”

“While Xuxi and I were moving down the East Wing to find it we ran into an obstacle.”

“That explains a lot…” Sicheng frowns.

“What do you mean?”

“Xuxi didn’t come back…” Sicheng looks out the door and into the hallway.

“Oh…” you hid your face again. That was your fault, wasn’t it? He must have died because of you, it was your fault. You did that to him, he would’ve still been alive right now if you didn’t come here at all. What were you thinking?

“It’ll be alright, Xuxi’s pretty smart, surprisingly, I’m sure he wouldn’t die because of a fire of all things,” he says. He stands up and holds his hand out to you. “Come on, let’s go.”

“What’s the point, Sicheng? No matter how we look at it we’re going to be dead within the hour!”

“You know what? Maybe we will be. Maybe as soon as we step out into that hallway we’ll get incinerated, maybe as soon as we step out into that hallway Yangyang will drive a knife into our backs, maybe we’ll even run out of oxygen before we get to the exit, but do you really want to go down knowing that you just resigned yourself to die in the interrogation room of all places?” Sicheng asks you. “(Y/N). From the time I was transferred here to the time we ran into each other in the Sector, I wanted nothing more than to kill myself, I figured that I was a dead man as soon as that _incident_ happened so it wouldn’t make a difference. And that’s a fact, if the other inmates haven’t lost their damn minds they’ll tell you the same. But right now, I don’t think I’ve ever felt more alive in my months of wasting away in here.” You looked up at him now.

He really had a point, didn’t he? How pathetic is this? You were the one originally trying to console him, and now he had to step out of his comfort zone to get you to go with him. He mentioned that he didn’t want to repeat his past mistakes, he wanted to make good with his past, and in order to do that he’d have to stop history from repeating itself. You didn’t know where this sudden burst of courageousness came from, the Sicheng you had seen was a rather feeble creature. Even when he broke the cuffs you were slightly surprised, you didn’t know that he had it in him. But now, you were thinking too much. The question was simple. Would you guarantee your death in here or chance your survival out there? Both had their own amiable factors. You stared at his hand and made your final choice.

~

Sicheng had done it.

After five agonizing months he finally paid off that excruciating debt his parents had left him, his name was finally cleared on the record, and he could finally relax. He could finally be free to choose what he wanted to do, where he wanted to go, he could do anything now. But his first thought was a simple one… it was _you_. He never stopped thinking of you for the past two months where he’d been gone, you were the one who kept him going. Even if you didn’t know it, you were his driving force. Words would never be able to describe the pain he went through after he told you he was ending it. He didn’t mean a single word of what he said, he could never. If only you knew what you did to him, you turned him into some lovesick puppy who was willing to risk it all for you.

But, he had to admit that he was such a _coward_ for breaking up with you in the first place. He cursed himself for not trusting you enough, but he was so afraid of what those horrible people could, no, _would_ do to you. He broke up with you to keep you safe, to keep you out of the eyes of the mafia his parents had so idiotically taken loans from. He just wanted you to be safe. He just wanted you to be happy. And he thought that the best way you could do that was if he wasn’t in the picture, or at least until he finally got his shit together enough so that he could be a decent person to you. But something strange always stood out to him while he was repaying that debt, it was something he'd always hear someone whispering about while he was walking around that facility.

It was that Sicheng was a very dangerous person.

That’s what he was referred to as while he paid off his debts.

However, why this is Sicheng would never know. Nor did he desire to know.

It was now, while he was standing in front of Liu Yangyang’s apartment, where he suddenly got second thoughts. What if you were perfectly happy now? What if you had made a life for yourself with Yangyang, what if you had completely moved on from him? What if you didn’t want anything to do with him? He wouldn’t have blamed you. Sicheng was never in a good place until recently. But even if he could get even a glimpse of you _happy_? That would be enough for him. After all, Sicheng never has, and likely never will, stop loving you. As much as he’d deny it, it was true. It was a curse at this point, these feelings he has for you. They came with the blessing that was _you_ , of course, but the way it mandated his actions every day nearly terrified him to no extent.

Just as much as it terrified him now. Just standing in front of this door. But, nevertheless, he gathered his resolve and knocked on it, waiting for a response. But, after a minute of silence, he tried again. Was no one home? He looked down at the parking lot but nope, yours and Yangyang’s cars were still in the lot, and it was midday. It was out of pure curiosity that he tried the knob.And when he found that the door was unlocked, Sicheng already feared the worse. He opened the door slowly.

The first thing he noticed was the smell. It was overbearing, and combined with the usual heat of the area, it was even worse. The second thing he noticed was the red stains on the wall. And at that point, he couldn’t even try to lie to himself. He ran into the apartment, taking care not to step on any of the blood splatters on the floor. The first person he found was Yangyang, he was wrapped in his blanket and stuffed to the side where he wouldn’t be seen through his window. His glasses were shattered next to him, and Sicheng preferred to not comment on his face.

“(Y/N)?!” Sicheng walked back out into the hallway, opening and closing doors, avoiding evidence, everything you’d expect him to do. He finally reached the second bedroom, and he stood for a moment to steel himself before opening the door.

It was horrible.

That was it.

That’s all Sicheng could think of to describe the scene in front of him.

He walked up to your body quietly, falling to his knees next to it. Stuffed in your pocket was an Ace of Hearts card, Taemin’s signature from what he remembered. Sicheng wiped the blood off of your face, and he felt himself break down there. You were gone, this was it. He should’ve stayed, he should’ve made sure that you were going to be alright, he should’ve been more careful. But no, he didn’t do that. Instead, he cut all ties with you, hoping and _praying_ that it would be enough to get you off of the mafia’s radar. But no, that’s not what happened. And Sicheng cursed himself for thinking that it would’ve been that easy when he knew that deep down inside there was no way.

He did this to you. This was his fault. If he hadn’t taken you to the hill that day, you’d never have met the Ace Assassin, you’d never have gotten involved in this. He did this to you. You’d still be alive if it weren’t for him. Why did he let himself fall into a trap as simple as this one? Why… no, _how_ did he let this happen?

He had heard the sirens awhile ago, he noticed, he just didn’t happen to care at the time. He didn’t think they were meant for him.

“Dong Sicheng?” It was your father’s voice.

“Mr. Park,” he turned around to face him. It was now where he realized how incriminating he looked. “What happened while I was gone?”

“Kid…” Hyunjun shook his head. He held up a bloodied license. “Tell me… tell me you didn’t do this.” Sicheng looked at the card in Hyunjun’s hand. It was, most definitely, _his_. But how it got here, he didn’t know. And why they decided to frame him, he didn’t know.

“I…” Sicheng rested his back against the wall. “I don’t understand… I paid off everything. I finished all the bullshit my parents dumped onto me… why did they do this? Mr. Park, please, believe me. I didn’t do this. You know I couldn’t have done this!” Sicheng felt his eyes tear up, but he couldn’t do anything that would incriminate him further.

“Sicheng,” Hyunjun’s voice was soft. “I want to believe you. I really do, kid, but… all the evidence outside is stacked against you. For fuck’s sake, I’m holding your driver’s license, Sicheng! I want to fucking believe you but with all of this hard evidence it’s really _hard_ for me to even _try_ to believe you!” Hyunjun shouts. Two officers run in behind him.

“That the guy?” One of them asks. Hyunjun holds his stare with Sicheng.

And at this moment, Sicheng’s thoughts were similar to that of a thunderstorm. How could this have happened? Why did this happen? What did he do? Where did he mess up? What’s going on? He glanced over at your body again, it was just so _bloody_. It made him sick to his stomach.

He did that to you, didn’t he?

It wasn’t Taemin, no. He would’ve never even thought about you if he didn’t bring you to the hill that night, you’d still be alive. You’d still be happy, right?

“No—”

“I did it. I killed her.”

_This was for you_.

~

“Watch out!” You pulled Sicheng out of the way of, surprise, more falling debris.

At this point the Sector was collapsing in on itself, and based on the blaring alarm above the two of you, oxygen levels were running low and you only had a matter of time before you were either sucked out into the empty vacuum of space or just suffocate in general. Then there was the whole thing about how you had to make sure the two of you didn’t run into Yangyang because you were both 100% certain that the inmate would kill you in some horrible way. And neither of you were willing to find out how at all.

“There you are!”

Talk about speaking of the devil.

“Yangyang!” Sicheng moved in front of you. You looked over Sicheng’s shoulder and shuddered at the amount of _red_ that stained Yangyang’s jacket. You didn’t want to know who that belonged to.

“You… I’ll deal with you before Guanheng…” Yangyang growled. He brandished the kitchen knife and stumbled.

“Yangyang, are you alright?” You asked him.

“He came from that end of the East Wing, that’s where the fire’s worst, I don’t think he’s in the right mental state right now.”

“I mean, when is he ever?”

“What I mean is that he hasn’t had a steady flow of oxygen,” Sicheng corrects himself.

“So be careful?”

“Yeah,” Sicheng answers.

“Sicheng, let me handle this,” your voice was firm.

“Alright, you know what to do, right?”

“I know,” you moved in front of him and approached Yangyang slowly. “Hey, hi… let’s uh… let’s put the knife down, Yangyang,” you held both of your hands in front of you.

“No way,” he grumbled. “He needs to die _now_. And if you want to live too, you’ll get out of my way, (Y/N),” his voice sounded hoarse.

You almost felt bad for him. He was so out of it now that he probably had no clue what he was saying, let alone thinking. You wondered if it really was worth it to even try talking to him, you felt like you were talking to a ticking time bomb, and if you weren’t careful, he’d explode and probably bring you down with him.

“(Y/N)! On your left!” You whipped your head back just in time to see Guanheng running up to you. He tackles Yangyang to the ground, knocking the knife out of his hands. “Yangyang! This wasn’t the plan! Why are you killing everyone?!” He shouts, keeping the younger inmate pinned down.

“Get _off_ of me, Guanheng!” Yangyang struggled in his grip.

“What happened to getting everyone out?! You can’t bring someone out if they’re _dead_ , Yangyang!”

“Fuck that! They’re all fucking traitors! Kun, Xiaojun, _Ten_! And you too now! I’ll make sure you end up like the rest of them did,” Yangyang grabs a hold of the knife again and Guanheng pins his arm down.

“Go! Go now! I’m not sure if I can keep him here for long!” Guanheng shouts. You stood stunned for a moment, you couldn’t help but stare at the sorry state his body was in. Then you felt Sicheng grab your arm and drag you down the hall.

“Don’t forget, we need to get to the emergency exit, once we figure out a way to get there we can go back for the others,” Sicheng reminds you. You could tell he was lying, and you didn’t blame him at all. Whether he was lying for you or for himself, it didn’t really matter. In the end, you always want to find a way to not pin the blame on yourself.

_‘If any of them are still alive.’_ You wanted to say, but maybe it would be better if you held out a bit of hope, maybe it will get you to survive longer. But, you had to do this now. If you waited any longer, there’s no telling what else will happen, so you picked up your own weight and ran with Sicheng, it’s time to leave. And if they didn’t want to kill either of you, you’ll pick up any other inmate along the way. You glanced back for a moment, not really knowing what to expect. But it came as no surprise that you couldn’t see either of the inmates anymore, their words had been long drowned out by the chaos. There would be no point in going back for them, you knew. They were gone. You wished that Sicheng told you the truth, but part of you knew that he already understood that you knew the truth of the matter.

“Dead end,” Sicheng huffed, looking at the wall in front of him.

“No… this is the emergency exit,” you looked behind you and down the halls. “That’s impossible though… how did we get here?” You were shocked, to say the least. 

“Fucking hell…” Sicheng brushed off an ember that fell on his shirt.

“We should go back for the others, tell them we found it,” you offered. But as soon as you turned around the ceiling caved in and, luckily, Sicheng was able to pull you out of the way for the umpteenth time.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, (Y/N).” You look over towards the door.

You remembered your father mentioning that sometimes it felt like the Sector had a mind of its own, and it was very receptive to who was in it. Your mother had brushed it off as him being ridiculous, but since you’ve gotten trapped here, you wondered if it was true. Even the doors were an enigma to you, did all of them just happen to take you to where your chosen inmate would be? Or would they take you to where you were supposed to be? The traps too, they’re rather interesting in and of itself. You don’t think you’d ever have known about how to truly leave the Sector if the infinity staircase didn’t take you back to Xiaojun, you don’t think you would’ve found out about the nature of everyone in the sector being inmates if you and Xuxi didn’t fall in the Cell Trap. Then there was the case of the tapes making it through the timelines, which was hard to explain other than by work of some rip in the fabric of the timelines.

Maybe this was the Sector saying that you should leave with Sicheng now?

“Let’s go in,” you opened the door and the two of you entered.

It was as dark and barren as before, with only the metal box in the center that would be your guide to freedom. You pulled the silver key out and stared at the box. Was it worth waiting to see if anyone would arrive? Your thoughts must have been displayed over your head, because Sicheng spoke up before you could even piece together what you were going to say.

“We’ll wait for a bit, see who turns up,” Sicheng sighs. But you both knew that the odds of that were very small. You grabbed at your neck, intending to take out your locket, for old time’s sake, and maybe the soft tune would be enough to lessen the tense atmosphere.

“Oh, I forgot…” you mumbled.

“What’s wrong?”

“Yangyang took my locket,” you explained. “Sucks, that was probably the last thing I had to remind me about my life before all of this insanity,” you frowned.

“Do you…” Sicheng looked away in a thought, wondering if he should bring it up. “Do you mean this locket?” He holds up an identical looking locket.

“Yeah, how did you get it back?” You took it in your hands and looked around it.

“I… uh… I’ve always had it,” he says. “Since I was transferred here, the Warden let me keep it.”

“Did he? That’s strange…” you opened it, but no sound came out. “Hmm… it’s broken.”

“Yeah, at some point I think I busted the pin drum, or something. But it used to play Clair de Lune on it,” he says. You sat down and rested your back against the cool metal box, it had been so long since you took a break from all of the running, you had to stop yourself from passing out right there. You began to turn the now opened locket around in your hands. It was missing it’s engraving as well, and there were no pictures inside of it. Sicheng sat next to you.

“What was your life like, (Y/N)?”

“Huh?”

“In the moon station. Like, where did you live? What did you do? What were your friends like? You know, stuff like that?” He asks.

“Oh… uh… I lived in a basic residence room, which is exactly as it sounds. It was just a bedroom with a bathroom, nothing that special.”

“No kitchen?”

“No, we all had to go to a certain eating area for that. It was to save space and energy, I think,” you thought back to your life in the moon station. It wasn’t all that eventful, actually. The most exciting thing you could remember was when Renjun started yelling at your supervisor because he was sick of being pushed around. You never really saw Renjun after that, though. “I worked in the Records offices, it was kind of boring actually, we just put things into a computer and called it a day.”

“Sure, but that’s important, isn’t it? Those are things that could be used in the future.”

“I guess, yeah,” you shrugged. Was your life really that uneventful? “My friends were nice too. You already know Ten.”

“Mmhmm, I’m sure the Ten you knew was very different from the one I knew.”

“And now I have no clue who he is at all,” you shook your head.

“That’s just the cruel fact of fate,” Sicheng said. “Any other friends?”

“Mark, Yerim, and Jaemin come to mind,” you crossed your legs and drummed on your knees. “Mark was my cubicle partner, Yerim and I had a lot of classes together growing up, and Jaemin was my uncle Donghae’s adoptive son.”

“Oh yeah? That sounds nice,” he nods. “I never really spoke to a lot of the inmates while I was here. I saw a few go, for good, and I’ve only spoken to the other five in here with me a handful of times. I kind of regret not forcing myself to talk to them more often, I kind of figured that since we’d be in here for the rest of our lives, I wouldn’t need to.”

“Sicheng, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“Who are you?” You turned your head to face him, and he sighed again.

“I thought a lot about it since you last asked me that,” he admits. “Back in my timeline, we used to be really close. We grew up in the same town, went to school together, I was the odd person out, but you always went out of your way to make sure I was included. All the basic stuff, you know?” 

“Was that all?” You pressed a little further.

“Well… no, no not really,” he rubs the ashes off of his face. “But there’s just so much to talk about, and so little time to do it,” he says.

“I get that,” you leaned back on the metal box.

“I used to have this motorcycle, actually. It was a gift from Mr. Park.”

“My dad Mr. Park?”

“Technically, yeah.”

“Oh really now? He must’ve really liked you then.”

“I bet he did,” Sicheng’s voice sounded remorseful. “I mean, it was technically a hand me down, it was so old that the company had gone out of business, so if it needed repairs my best bet was to just do it myself. Now that I think about it, I think Mr. Park only gave it to me because he wanted to keep me out of trouble,” Sicheng let out a small laugh.

“Ah, now _that_ sounds like my dad,” you smiled. “He once did something similar for me, he left me with a circuit breaker puzzle and told me that he wasn’t going to buy me any stuffed animals until I solved it. It’s safe to say that by the time I got it I had grown out of that phase.”

“Even in this timeline, you’re so cute,” Sicheng covers his face with his hands. “I’m sorry, that must sound so strange. You barely even know me.”

“I wish we had more time, Sicheng. I feel like you and I could’ve been great friends,” you nudged his side gently. “Your motorcycle… it wouldn’t happen to be an Ironwood, would it?”

“Huh? Yeah. How did you know?” Sicheng asks.

“It’s the company that brought everyone to the moon. But after they finished that they filed for bankruptcy and left us all here,” you grimaced. “It’s a good thing we had such great leaders, otherwise I’m sure we would have all turned on each other. I know it was a bit of a jump, connecting those two, but I just had a weird feeling.”

“Yeah, from what I know, Ironwood was kind of a shitty company,” he says.

“I bet…” you rubbed your eyes, not being able to deny the tiredness you felt from them. You felt your head start to spin, it felt like someone was running around and knocking on the inside of your skull. And the ringing, the constant high pitched noise in your ears was excruciatingly annoying. You had to choose your evil, block out the noise and keep your head spinning, or cover your eyes and endure the screeches. But soon they all came to a halt altogether. And strange images started to form in your head. They looked like scenes straight out of a movie, they almost seemed so natural to the point where they looked scripted, but most importantly they were so familiar. They resembled so many things that you dreamed about before. Then, came a very certain memory. The rushing lights, the deafening silence, the chaotically peaceful dream that you only had the luck of seeing a handful of times. But, too soon, you were pulled out of your dream-like state.

“Are you alright?” Sicheng asks you, his hand was on your shoulder, and he had a look of concern on his features. You blinked a few times, still processing what had just occurred, and wondering if you should tell Sicheng what you know.

“I’m sorry.” You were hit with a sudden wave of guilt. You had treated him so horribly this entire time, he had been so death afraid of you that you didn’t know how to handle it. But now it was so clear, he had tried so hard to finally move on from your previous self, did you really want to pull him back to the past? Was that fair to him? You wanted to tell him that you never gave up on him, you wanted to tell him that you waited, and, by god, you wanted to tell him that it wasn’t his fault for your death. 

“For what? Causing this fire? That’s not your fault,” Sicheng says. Maybe it would be better if you didn’t tell him. “Honestly, (Y/N), I think you coming to the Sector was the most activity we’ve had in this Sector since… forever, actually.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah, I can see why you think it’s a bad thing, I mean, we have no clue who’s still alive out there, let alone who’s going to find this emergency exit, but really, I don’t think any of them regret it, as strange as that sounds. Maybe this is just me, but I’d rather go down fighting, or with a purpose of some sort. It’s much better than just sitting in our cells waiting to die, you know?”

“Yeah, you have a point,” you nodded your head. Should you tell him? “But, Sicheng… that’s not what I meant to say,” you mumbled.

“Oh, I’m sorry for speaking over you.”

“No, no, it’s fine,” you rocked back and forth. “It’s not your fault, you know that, right?” Sicheng’s expression dropped and you immediately regretted even saying something in the first place.

“I’m not so sure about that,” he frowns. “Why? What do you think?”

“After you left me at Yangyang’s apartment, huh Yangyang, how strange, sorry, that was off topic. I ended up telling him everything, and we agreed that you just needed time to sort everything out. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still upset that you didn’t trust me enough to help you, I felt that way when you first left me, and now that I remember that timeline, or at least most of it, I still can’t wrap my head around it. But it wasn’t your fault, that’s something out of your jurisdiction, there’s no way you could have had a direct relation to that event,” you spoke as you thought, trying to put pieces together. “But you were always like that, weren’t you? So secretive, keeping things to yourself, and all of that. You know you can trust us a bit more, and if not anyone else, you know you can trust me, right?”

“Yeah… I do,” Sicheng was amazed almost, you really did remember a lot of what happened. He took the key from your hand and stood up. “I don’t think anyone’s coming.”

“No, I don’t think so either,” you stood up next to him. “I just feel a little bad, is all.”

“I know, I know, just keep in mind that they’re all in a better place now. And at least they died with a purpose, other than just burning to death,” he says. “Like Xuxi, he was hell-bent on clearing the debris so you could escape.”

“Right, you’re right,” you nodded your head. Sicheng pushed in the key and turned it, activating the emergency exit, and surrounding the two of you in a bright light. But despite this ray of hope, you couldn’t help but to be reminded of something that truly bothered you.

You never told Sicheng about the ceiling caving in between you and Xuxi, did you?

~

“Dong Sicheng~” You sang, skipping up to the man. Sicheng looked up at you from his spot on the ground and smiled.

“Hi, (Y/N),” his voice was soft and light. It was the voice of someone who didn’t have a care in the world. “How are you?”

“I’m doing alright…” you rubbed the top of his head sweetly and grabbed a book from the shelf. “How’s that new table coming along?”

“Why didn’t you tell me not to do it?”

“I did, but you insisted that you could do it,” you teased him. “I mean, it looks good so far,” you encouraged him.

“Does it really?”

“Mmhmm, looks very… table-y? Is that a word?” You hummed. “I’d help but…”

“Right, baby, you shouldn’t be working, in fact, you should be sitting down right now, what are you doing?”

“I’m tired of sitting around! I’m going to bake!”

“Baking, huh? What are you baking?”

“Bread!” You beamed. “Ya know… like… like the metaphor? About having a bun in the oven?”

“Yes, I know,” Sicheng laughs. “You’re so cute.”

“Stop it, I’m blushing,” you covered your blush with your hand and laughed.

“Alright, not-cute-wife, how are you going to get the ingredients?”

“Easy, I made Xuxi do it,” you told him. “And he should be arriving in about… now.” Right as you pointed at the front door, the doorbell sounded.

“(Y/N), my coworkers don’t exist for you to tell them to do things for you, silly girl. You could’ve just asked me, you know?” He laughs.

“Yeah, but you’re busy building a table, so I just asked Xuxi to do it,” you explained.

“Fine, fine,” Sicheng rolled his eyes playfully. “Tell him I said ‘hi!’”

“Will do, be right back,” you walked away and Sicheng visibly relaxed, taking the silver key out of his hand.

When the light had subsided, he found himself in that old garage he used to work at. He was crouching down next to his helmet, and he watched the note flutter out, still folded and sealed neatly. He took it without a second glance and tossed it in the trash, strapping his own helmet on and taking you to the park instead of the hill. The two of you had a rather pleasant time, he never broke up with you, he got his loan all paid and sorted without any strings attached, and, most important of all, you were alive and well. And you were with him, he couldn’t have asked for a better alternative to his timeline.

He had to admit that he was _very_ awkward when he saw his timeline’s versions of the inmates, especially Yangyang, for obvious reasons, but he took care not to use his experience from TL9 to affect his relationship with this version of Yangyang, it just wouldn’t be fair. Especially after seeing how TL9 Yangyang treated Xiaojun, it was just cruel. And how could he forget about Guanheng? In his timeline he didn’t have DID, there was no Nana, no Kunhang, no Juni, just Guanheng, and to make things a tad bit more confusing, he only went by Hendery. Sicheng couldn’t help but wonder what happened to the inmates, if he had known that the silver key was a one time use, he would’ve made sure the ones who were still alive, if there were any, were all in the emergency exit before the two of you activated it.

Then again, maybe it was for the best? He didn’t want Ten and Yangyang running amok, especially knowing that there was something wrong with them, something that changed in them.

But he’s getting off-topic now. Sicheng held the silver key in his hands, and he truly wanted nothing more than to destroy it and get it out of his life for good. Especially because of the nightmares you were having. He was a bit hurt that you didn’t tell him about them until recently though, but you did chalk it up to it being some strange pregnancy dreams, which is why you didn’t tell him initially. But when you told him what had _happened_ in your nightmares? Nightmares about fires in a prison and a room filled with chains? That’s when he started panicking. Maybe if he got rid of this key it would relieve you of those nightmares? He stood up and walked over to the kitchen right as Xuxi placed the groceries on the table.

“Good luck, (Y/N), don’t work too hard,” Xuxi gives her a thumbs up.

“Xuxi, let me walk you back,” Sicheng offers.

“Huh? Sure thing,” Xuxi catches up with Sicheng and the two walk to the door together.

“Hey, before you leave, here. Take this,” Sicheng handed the silver key to Xuxi.

“What’s this?”

“No clue, I found it in the attic the other day, the previous homeowners must have left it.”

“Oh yeah? Cool.”

“I’m also pretty sure it’s haunted.”

“What?! Not cool, dude! Get rid of it yourself!”

“Oh! No, I can’t,” Sicheng waved his hands in front of him. He had to bullshit some excuse now. “Haven’t you heard of the superstition that if homeowners find a haunted or cursed object in their house they can’t get rid of it themselves? They need someone they trust to do it for them!”

“You… you trust me?” Xuxi’s eyes go wide. “Leave it to me! I’ll dispose of the key properly!”

“Thanks, man. I’ll see you later?”

“For sure! I’ll text you once the key’s gone for good.”

“Thanks, Xuxi,” Sicheng watches the tall boy leave, and once he had pulled out of the driveway, Sicheng closed and locked the door.

“Winwin! Can you help me really quick? I can’t reach the butter!”

“I’m on my way!” Sicheng walked over to the kitchen.

This was perfect, it was all he could ever ask for, and all he could ever need. Even when he had successfully kept you out of the eyes of the mafia he owed money to, he thought, why stop there? He gave all the information he had to your father, and soon enough, after two long years and multiple parties working together, the mafia was successfully dismantled, keeping his and your lives safe. Yes, this is the best possible outcome for this timeline. But why stop there? As long as you didn’t know what he was fully up to, you’d still be safe. That’s what matters. Safety is the priority, despite whatever it is that happens to him, as long as he keeps his family safe that’s what matters. After all, don’t the ends justify the means?

But it was in between these two years of peace when Sicheng finally realized why he was considered a “dangerous person.”

It’s not that he’d die for you, oh no, he’d never let you go through that.

You have to understand, Sicheng had engraved into his mind that he’d _live_ for you.

And that’s what made him someone that no one would want to anger. That kind of persistency is something not to be ignored, it was something to be heralded, if anything. Persistency makes for a dangerous criminal, after all. The ends will justify the means and, after all, this was _all_ for you.


	15. Ginseng [Guanheng Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 8.6K
> 
> Notes: Ahhhh! I’m so sorry this took so long, I didn’t intend for it to. But don’t worry, it’s here now! I’m sorry to say that the next endings will have to wait for when I’m fully off of hiatus :( But I do wanna live them out with you guys, hehe, I’ll respond to asks tomorrow, promise! But until then, please enjoy the fifth ending of Zemblanity! Hmm, I wonder who’s next.... 
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Violence, Murder, Death

“Oh, can you drop off that shipment over there please?” You directed the florists with precision, guiding them and the long trains of flowers to their destination. And Guanheng watched with piqued curiosity, studying your moves and your body language, you were always the one to surprise him. There was a certain grace to your movements, Guanheng would later note as one of your most attractive characteristics. There was something about the way you held yourself that was enchanting to him. Or maybe it was the fact that you, a basic commoner, had found your way into his heart. Guanheng remembered that day rather clearly, the day you, quite literally, walked into his life.

You had both met at a rather young age, your family being the royals’ go-to for flowers and planning for their always so often balls and galas, and thus you’d always find time to be with the crown prince. But it all began with a simple _collision_ , Guanheng remembered the sounds of glass shattering, he remembered pricking his hands on the roses’ thorns, he remembers gluing the vases together with you, it was all a memory very vivid in his mind. Even when there wasn’t an event on the way, Guanheng had taken time to find you and spend as much time as he could, being a prince had always been somewhat of a lonely occupation, or at least, that’s what he thought. According to what he had heard from the castle’s resident gossipers, you had spiraled into somewhat of a depression when you heard what had happened to the royal family that faithful night, and he didn’t blame you. 

It was at his impromptu coronation following his return from the Empire of Korea where he saw you again, and he had run into you quite spontaneously, and literally, in the gardens, but when it happened he found himself in a state of serendipity, it was like history had repeated itself. You were setting up flower vases while his nose was stuck in a book, and you both collided with each other, causing a majority of the vases to fall to the ground and shatter. You were in a frenzy, seeing your close friend again but at the same time working hard to see if any of the vases were salvageable, and in the end, you ended up holding him in an embrace that made him feel like you were desperately trying to keep him afloat in the never-ending ocean that was his mind, and Guanheng, with the sudden shock of glass shattering, had fallen victim to the first of many headaches to erupt in the young king-to-be. Once you had noticed that something was amiss, you quickly moved to pull away, but he held you in place, because for some reason you seemed to be what was anchoring him to this world.

Guanheng didn’t remember much of it, only a female voice telling him that it would be alright, and that he should calm down, he wasn’t in any danger. It felt like he was looking at the world through a pair of binoculars, he was so far, but so near at the same time. But another voice drew him back into reality, and that voice was yours. The headache had subsided, and Guanheng looked up to you, when had he sat down? Your eyes were so big and round, and so full of concern, that was the one thing Guanheng had long ago noted and it was one of the things he remembers you by. That was probably where his infatuation started, he believed. And from there on out he took it upon himself to have you around him at all times, purposefully or by chance. But the best part of this situation wasn’t that, it was that you never caught on. You had simply seen it as the young king wanting to have someone to speak to, someone to be friends with, and it had worked.

You had seen Guanheng through the best and worst moments of his life. You had witnessed the birth and the integrating of many alters, and you had been with them for longer than they could remember. Guanheng never really realized it, but you were rather close with the other alters, you took it upon yourself to learn about them and to get to know them, and you were so desperate to understand them. Guanheng’s condition was one that was horribly rare, and one with no cure. And due to the elders wanting him to keep it a secret from the world, it was one that he couldn’t even speak of in public. That is, except for you. You, who have seen it all. He only wished that he could tell you every detail about it, but even he had a hard time comprehending what had occurred to him in that cell in the enemy kingdom.

But that didn’t really matter to him. What mattered to him was that you _tried_. You did everything in your power to understand. He’d never forget the day he walked into your room and saw the stacks of journals all dedicated to his alters and who they were and how to tell them apart, there likes and dislikes and what not. He remembered reading all of them, and he remembered the gratification he felt when he did, tracing his fingers over the soft handwritten passages, he was in awe, and hopelessly in love. It was a blessing that all seven of the alters had taken kindly to you. Nana was particularly fond of you, always pestering Juni to let her front so she could talk to you, and on that topic, Juni was a close second, always willing to grab a cup of tea with you and catch up. The other alters were rather sweet as well, always saying good things about you, and always being rather annoying in terms of who wanted to front. But Guanheng wouldn’t want it any other way, if any, this was more beneficial for him.

But now, here you were. Standing across from him and speaking to your family members while they decorated the wedding hall. Strange, it wasn’t even his wedding, but for some reason, it felt that way, it felt like in a few weeks he’d be standing at the altar while he watched you walk down that regal aisle. But when he turned to the mantle pieces and stared at the draperies, that’s when he was reminded of the fact that this wasn’t his wedding, rather it was his close friend, the general who stood by his side all these years. A trio of meddlers, is how the head maid would put it. If only he could get the councilmen to approve his own marriage, that’s all it would take.

“Guanheng?” You tilted your head to the side. Guanheng tore his focus from the tapestries and turned to you. “You good?”

“Yeah, of course,” he nods. “Did everything sort out?”

“Quite nicely, yes,” you gestured for a lost florist to make their way to the altar. “Ahh, that Xuxi, he’d better _sob_ when Yuqi walks down that aisle or I’m shoving these multitudes of flowers he ordered up his ass.” Guanheng covered his mouth while he laughed, the strange image printed in on his mind.

“Whether he sobs because of Yuqi or because of his pollen allergy, I can assure you that’s _definitely_ something that will happen,” Guanheng snickers.

“Yuqi promised me that she was going to beat his ass in ‘ceremonial battle’ for me.”

“I thought ceremonial battle was just a battle for the throne?”

“According to Yuqi, in her kingdom its tradition to do that in weddings, and, well, you know Xuxi, he’s always down for a fight.”

“Is that really tradition?”

“Something tells me that she just wanted an excuse to fight Xuxi,” you nudged his side.

“Is it a full-on brawl or a swords fight?”

“Groom’s choice.”

“Oh, it’s definitely going to be a fistfight then,” Guanheng nods. “I’ll have the medic ready.”

“Please do, I worry for our general’s… health,” you bit your lip in a thought. “This will certainly be one wedding to remember.”

“I agree,” Guanheng looks around the chapel again. “You really outdid yourself here, (Y/N).”

“Well, I am the ‘Official Event Planner,’ as Matthew puts it,” you laughed. Guanheng didn’t even try to hide the faint blush. You really were perfect, weren’t you? You were the only one who really cared about him, who he was, what he wanted to do, you truly were the one for him. He couldn’t help but look at you with the most admiration, and he’d always be proud of who you were, as you were proud of who he was as well. “Huh? What was that?” You turned your attention towards the maid who ran up to you.

“Need to go?”

“Will you be good?”

“Of course,” Guanheng gave you a confident smile and nod, and he saw your features relax.

“I’ll be right back, if you need me I’ll be in Yuqi’s room,” you told him.

“Oh, your majesty?” A messenger ran up to him holding an envelope in hand.

“Yes?”

“This came in earlier, the messenger said it was urgent,” he hands him the envelope and Guanheng took it. The messenger bowed his head before rushing off. Guanheng left the chapel and stepped out into the outside, feeling the breeze move through his hair. He opened the letter quickly, and the first thing he noticed was the heavy stench of iron from the envelope paired with gun powder, and he already feared the worse. Was it another alliance request? He didn’t think the kingdom was fit to assist in another war yet. He unfolded the paper inside and read the message inside.

_‘You’ve always been one to sit back and watch on the sidelines, haven’t you, your majesty? Next month you will be admitted into the brash and unforgiving Sector V due to your insolence. In order to avoid this, you must kill the one who ruined your life, and you must do it on the fifteenth of April._

_-W.KH’_

Guanheng’s expression flattened into one of contempt. He looked around to find the messenger who sent it, and he heard his heart thumping. Guanheng tried to calm himself down, holding his hand to his head and keeping a hold of the steering wheel in his mind. If he was to compare something to what the state of his mind was right now, it would be somewhat of a perturbed sea, although there were no thunder clouds or lightning strikes, the ship would rock back and forth with waves spilling onto the deck relentlessly. And to make it worse, the entirety of the crew in his head was trying to grab ahold of the helm, all arguing with each other and all shoving each other out of the way, until finally, Guanheng blacked out.

~

You stepped out of the door and into a world of fierce flames and suffocating smoke and steam. You immediately had to brush embers off of you and wipe the sweat away from your head. It was a horrible experience, and you wanted nothing more to get out of it. You clawed at your neck, the metal chain that was your locket suddenly feeling more constricting than it should and, without another thought, you ripped the chain off. Your spinning vision focused on the piece of metal that you had so faithfully worn with hopes of some luck coming from it but it had become clear that it had only run out once you stepped into the Sector. With a strange and inexplicable rage inside of you, you threw the locket into the fire, watching the paperweight melt before your eyes, it was the last thing you wanted to see right now, a symbol and beacon of hope was what it once was, and now it served to remind you of your mistakes.

Your eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness and you knew just where you were, the Boiler Room. This room has seen so much, and certainly it will see your last. You coughed smoke and you inhaled steam, surely if you stayed here any longer that would be it. You took a step forward and nearly tripped over something, and once you had looked down and stabilized your vision, there was no mistaking it, it was _him_.

“Guanheng?” You crouched next to him and shook him as hard as you could. Your hand moved to his wrist and you checked his pulse, it was weak, but steady. “Argh… geez…” You grabbed his wrist and looked around for an opening to be able to get out safely.

“I’m sorry,” you pulled him through the Boiler Room, trying your best to avoid obstacles around the way. You made it to the middle of the walkway before your legs gave in, and you collapsed on the metal floor, coughing out more smoke. You checked on Guanheng again, he was still alive, but barely. The dark spots in your vision started to finally take over, and every breath you took just became shallower. You squinted your eyes through the confusion, and saw someone making their way towards you. He grabbed both you and Guanheng, and all you could think of was that once you saw your father again you’d ask what the hell had just happened in that Sector.

You woke up in what you assumed to be one of the cells, it was dark inside and filled with plants. You coughed a few times before your vision straightened, and you found your arm inside a pool of water. You pulled it out and stared at the light burns on it.

“Hey, you’re awake,” Xuxi walked into the cell, holding gauze and bandages in his hands. He caught his breath before speaking again. “You doing okay?”

“I’m alright…” you shook the water off of your arm. “Where’s Guanheng?” You looked around the cell.

“Over there, he hasn’t woken up yet,” Xuxi nods his head over to Guanheng, who was pushed up against the wall.

“Where are we?”

“Guanheng’s cell. It was the closest place I could get to out of the fire,” Xuxi answers. “The cells are kind of built apart from the Sector, as long as we stay in here we’ll be fine but…”

“Can’t stay in here forever, right?”

“Right.”

“How did this even happen?” You dug your hands into your hair. Xuxi didn’t answer you, he just moved over to Guanheng and started wrapping the other’s arm. You, meanwhile, stayed stuck in your thoughts, wondering if this was the right course of action for you. Just sitting around and waiting to die, it was harder than it seemed. You didn’t know if you wanted to die by fire or by starvation… or even worse, your mind flashed back to that conversation Yangyang and Xuxi were having in the mess hall and you shuddered. You’d rather not turn into food for any of the inmates, not that it’d get down to that, would it?

“Oh, hey, before I forget, this box fell out of your pocket while I was carrying you out,” Xuxi tossed it to you and you caught it with both hands. You didn’t recognize it at all. “I’m going to go out and see if I can find the others, can you watch him for me?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Alright, I’ll be back,” Xuxi looked over at you and gave you a small smile before he left the cell. You looked down at the gold colored box. The material around it resembled silk, and the edges of it were slightly worn down with age and singed because of the fire. Embroidered into the top were the words ‘From beginning to end.’ You ran your thumb on top of it gently, wondering what the phrase meant, but also acknowledging the weight behind them. Something in it struck a chord in you, something in that phrase specifically begged you to be reminded of it, but you couldn’t wrack your brain for the truth for the life of you. You opened the box slowly and had to suppress the scoff that tried to escape your throat. You reached in and pulled out the silver chain, watching the pendant rock back and forth in the air.

“I just _can’t_ get rid of you, can’t I?” You stared at the locket and finally grabbed the pendant, opening it and listening to the soft tune playing in it. You wondered how it got into your pocket, and you wondered if you really wanted to know. Was it even worth it?

Your father had told you many times before that the Sector worked in strange ways. Sometimes when he was desperately looking for something, he’d turn around and find it on his desk. Sometimes he’d walk around and appear right where he needed to be within a few seconds. He once told you that he thought that the Sector had a mind of its own, he had said that there were instances where it would seem like the Sector just _knew_ what had to be done. You thought he was joking, until he told you about how it would put two cells belonging to two certain people as far as possible, and now that you think back to that conversation, maybe your father had a point. The Sector, as frustrating as it is, has proved to have worked independently of how you thought things should work logically.

You shook your head. You had to have gone crazy. Being in that Boiler Room for too long must have done something to you, or maybe Xuxi accidentally hit your head on something while he was getting you out. Regardless, you closed the locket and clasped it over your neck. If it was going to be difficult about being removed, you’d might as well keep it on. You saw Guanheng shift in his sleep, and you reacted immediately, moving over to him.

“Guanheng? Guanheng, are you alright?” You shook his shoulder again softly. The inmate’s eyes opened slowly, noticing your hand first before noticing you. Immediately, he squared his shoulders and cleared his throat.

“What happened?”

“Xuxi just pulled us out of the Boiler Room, I think,” you answered him. He looked around the cell and stood up first, walking by you without a word. You followed him quickly and observed his movements, trying to figure out if he had switched. 

“Where’s Xuxi now?”

“Just left to try to find the others.”

“He shouldn’t have bothered,” he mutters. “Well, you’d might as well be useful. Do you know how to get to the Warden’s Office from here?”

“Uh… Yes?”

“Good enough, I need to find something before it’s too late,” he explains.

“Oh, okay,” you didn’t know how else to reply to that, so instead you tested your luck. “Kunhang?”

“What?”

“Ah… nothing,” you looked away from him and kicked the gold box behind you, watching it sink into the pool next to you.

“I need you to open the door first, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah, I remember,” you rushed past him and opened it, walking out first and allowing him to follow. Although the air was still heavy in this area, the fires still haven’t reached this side of the Sector, luckily. “What is it that you need anyway?”

“None of your business.”

“Fine, fine, sorry for asking,” you moved ahead of him, taking each turn slowly. It was strange, you felt like you knew the Sector better than you knew your own thoughts at this point. Kunhang followed close behind you, keeping a watchful eye out for anyone else. “I think it’s over here,” you turned a corner and, lo and behold, the office was just to the right of you. You twisted the doorknob, but it stayed stationary.

“Let me try,” Kunhang offers, you back up and he twists the doorknob with enough force to break it off.

“We could’ve just found the key.”

“The Sector’s about to burn down, what’s another broken door?” Kunhang scowls. He pushes the door open and you follow him in. The first thing he did was go through the files on the bookshelf. “Do me a favor and look through the desk, I’m looking for a file bound with red string, it should say Guanheng’s name on top of it.”

“Got it,” you threw open drawers next, digging through the messy areas. You pulled out various papers, most of which didn’t make sense to you, but one, in particular, caught your eye. You flattened it out on the desk. It was talking about the other timelines with various consistencies and inconsistencies written out on it, that sourced different tapes. And again, there was your name, circled in red pen and surrounded by words that seemingly applied to you. You glanced over to Kunhang, who was still digging through the bookshelf, looking above, below, and everything in between. You turned back to the makeshift mind map and read it carefully, starting from your name branched eight lines, and at the end of each line were names that you naturally recognized, but with each of those names came more words that you couldn’t draw connections to. The first you read was Kun’s, who was directly on top with the word ‘TL1’ next to it. “Business, Relationship, Separated…” you mumbled.

And the words continued, there was something about the jumble of information that you felt should’ve jogged your memory. Truthfully, Xiaojun’s did ring some bells for you. Business, Secretary, Fiancée. You could make a story out of this, you thought, if you really tried hard enough to put the words together, even with Yangyang’s this was possible. But the most interesting one, you had to admit, was the one that belonged to Guanheng.

“Royalty, consort, exiled,” you muttered. Kunhang slammed his hand on the desk and you shied away.

“Focus.”

“Right, sorry,” you pushed the paper aside and moved back to the drawers while Kunhang went over to the filing cabinets. You peeked over the side of the desk and watched him for a moment before returning to the task at hand. It was natural to wonder what was in that file he was looking for, and curiosity begged you to ask him. But you’d rather not make him upset, ever since your first run-in with Kunhang in this very room, you had a feeling that it would be better to comply with him than to ask for answers. You pulled out another stray paper at the bottom of the drawer, and you were about to toss it aside, when you noticed Xuxi’s name on top. It was a document dated back a good three or so months ago, it resembled a doctor’s report. You read the name and you felt a small bit of fondness. “Ah… Doyoungie,” the nickname was sweet coming from you. You thought back to your neighbor, who was a rather plain fellow, although he was reliable, helping you out more than once in your life. It was then when you noticed the glare Kunhang sent your way, and you slowly lowered yourself back onto the floor while you went through the bottom drawer. You read through the doctor’s report.

“Misdiagnosis?” You whispered, going through the report.

_‘The previous diagnosis from Dr. Song is incorrect, Mr. Hyunjun. After going through the months-worth of footage you’ve sent me, there’s just no way that Inmate 10100 exhibits the symptoms of MBP. I suggest that you open a time for me to come in and properly speak with the inmate, I’d like to clear any misinformation, it is vital to the mental healths’ of the inmates, please give me a call as soon as you can so we can work out the details. For now, I will attach a very brief predicted report of the inmate, please keep in mind that this is all hypothesized until I can further collect data on the inmate.’_

You placed the paper aside and went back to the drawers, even if you wanted to make sense of the rest of that report, you were certain that it wouldn’t have been beneficial to you. You pulled out more loose papers, silently cursing both your father _and_ Ten for their lack of organization, something your father had failed at in life and furthermore had failed to teach your best friend, then you finally noticed a different colored file at the bottom. It was tied with red string just as Kunhang said, and on top read Guanheng’s name in messy handwriting. You pulled it out carefully, being sure to keep the papers neatly inside, and placed it on the desk, the file was a lot larger than you had expected, it took both of your hands to pull it out of the desk alone.

“Kunhang! I found it here,” you called him over. Kunhang placed the file he was holding down and rushed over to the desk, ripping the tie off and opening the file. At first glance, they looked like transcripts to you, but the dates were all messed up.

“Hold this,” he dropped a stack of the transcripts into your grasp. “And this,” he placed medical records on top of them.

“Why wasn’t this with the others?”

“It was my fault, I made Xuxi try to grab them for me and the Warden caught on and hid them from me,” Kunhang answers. He continues flipping through the mass of papers within the file. “Well, to be fair, I make Xuxi do a lot of things for me. As long as I pretend I’m Hendery, he’ll listen.”

“Stuff like what?” You asked him, a hint of skepticism in your voice, while you looked through the papers in your hands.

“I once asked him to get me the entire bottle of acetaminophen from the med bay and, would you look at that, he did. He’s kind of an idiot, but I guess it’s nice to have some things remain consistent throughout the timelines,” Kunhang drops another stack of papers into your hands. “I was still kind of a bastard at the time, and I convinced him that I had a chronic sickness that the others didn’t believe. So I had him add increasing dosages of that drug into Guanheng’s meals.”

“That’s _horrible_.”

“I know, but I didn’t really care at the time. Turned out that the brat snitched on me to Hendery, so the plan failed anyway,” Kunhang frowned. 

“Yangyang?”

“Yeah. He’s a lot smarter than he lets on, and it’s fucking annoying. Doesn’t matter, I got my revenge again by convincing Xuxi that Yangyang needed a certain medicine too. I heard the brat had a hard time that whole month, a pity, really,” he scoffs. You stared at him with a flat expression, to which he only quirked an eyebrow. “What?”

“No wonder the others hate you.”

“I mean, I feel bad about it now, I guess,” he rolls his eyes. Kunhang takes out a news article. “Got it.” He sat on the couch while he read through it, comparing it with another article he had found. Meanwhile, you started snooping through the file, reading through various notes and such.

“If you don’t mind me asking… what was it you were looking for?” You shut the file when Kunhang stood up again. He handed you the news articles. Certain names and words were blacked out with a marker, but for the most part it was still legible. “This is it? Did you at least get the closure you wanted?”

“I was looking for more of an official report, I figured the old Warden had it since he was so invested into his savior complex— oh, come on, darling, don’t look at me like that, I’m _right_ , aren’t I? But, anyway, it’s not here,” Kunhang shrugs. “Those are the next best thing though.” You looked at the headline, it came from somewhere called the Empire of Korea, and it had something to do about an exile getting executed, and at that point that was where you chose not to read on.

“Whatever,” Kunhang dismissed the topic himself and ripped the articles.

“That’s where you two have been! You both gave me a heart attack, you know?!” Xuxi barges into the room.

“Sorry, I wanted to wait but Kunhang said he needed to find something,” you pointed towards the mentioned inmate and he pressed his lips into a flat line, before it curled into a small smirk.

“(Y/N) told me you went out on a goose chase, is that right?”

“I seriously hate you, do you always have to be this difficult?” Xuxi scowled. “I found Ten and Kun but… something told me to leave them alone.”

“And the others?” You asked.

“None.”

“Makes sense,” Kunhang cut in. “Kun shoved Yangyang into the fire down in the Boiler Room, so he’s been long gone. Ten bolted before Kun could do anything, and Hendery played dead the entire time before I got sick of it and booted him from the helm. Looks like Kun’s priority was Ten, he left me alone,” Kunhang explained.

“Oh…” you did your best to keep the mental image of Yangyang… _you know_ , out of your head. “How about Xiaojun or Sicheng?”

“Missing, as far as I know,” Kunhang answers, he looks over to Xuxi, who just shakes his head. “Well, we can scratch them out of the equation then,” Kunhang reasons.

“But—” Kunhang held his hand up to silence you again. 

“If you want to get out of here alive, I suggest you drop the hero facade, (Y/N), it was never a good look on you.”

“What the _fuck_ is your problem?!” You shout. Kunhang recoils slightly at your outburst. “Look, if you want to be a _dick_ about it, then wait here,” you grumbled.

“Xuxi, you coming?” You walked over to the door. Xuxi looked between you and Kunhang.

“Uh, yeah,” he catches up with you and you slam the, already broken, door behind you.

~

“What do you mean she _left_?!” Guanheng’s voice rose at the councilman in front of him. The councilman took a step forward to calm the king down, but Guanheng shook him off. “Where is she?!”

“She left in the night, your majesty,” the councilman bowed his head. “We don’t know how she left…” Guanheng stepped back, holding the sides of his head, it was spinning faster than it had ever been, if he were to continue the ship metaphor then surely it must have been sinking at this point, and all of the lifeboats were taken by _you_.

“When… when did this happen?” Guanheng was starting to lose his grip on the helm, someone was trying to tear him away, someone he didn’t recognize, and instead he seized the shoulders of the man in front of him. He didn’t care for the way the old man winced and writhed under his vice grip, he only cared for _answers_. Why would you leave him? Everything was fine just a few hours ago, right? Did he do something to hurt you? No, wait… did _they_ do something to hurt you? Guanheng looked across the ship, watching the seven people running along the slippery deck under the tumultuous storm.

_Which one of them did this?_

Was it Juni? Nana? Matt? Ben? The possibilities were endless. Or… was it someone he didn’t know about yet? It wouldn’t have been the first time this happened, the first time he didn’t know of an alter.

“A few hours prior to midnight, your majesty.”

_‘He’s lying. You know he is,’_ Juni’s voice was most prevalent now, she was trying to take over, or, more specifically, it looked like she was trying to _stop_ someone from taking over.

“How many?”

“Three.”

“You’re lying, I was with her,” Guanheng released the councilman and ran over to his balcony looking out into the night, wondering, no, _praying_ to find some sign of you. “You’re _lying_ to me!” Guanheng turned back around and walked over to the councilman, rage and confusion burning all the same inside of him. What was this feeling he had? Was this what it felt like to be _betrayed_? But by who? By the council? By himself? By _you_?

“Your majesty please, I beg you, calm down—”

“How the _fuck_ can I?!” Was that even his voice anymore? Guanheng felt himself being pulled back, the world was minimizing, and he was staring through those accursed binoculars again, until the lenses blacked out.

When Guanheng had finally come back to the front, he didn’t recognize where he was, but he did recognize the person in front of him.

“Your royal majesty, is there something wrong?” The emperor of Korea, Doh Kyungsoo, leaned forward in his chair across the table from Guanheng. Guanheng turned to his left and, of course, General Huang Xuxi was sitting beside him. Xuxi must have caught on to the fact that Guanheng had taken control again, it was written on his face, whoever was previously fronting had tricked him. “Your majesty?” Kyungsoo reiterated. Guanheng shook his head and smiled

“No, I apologize, go on, your imperial majesty,” Guanheng nods and looks at Xuxi now, who’s equally as concerned as he was. Kyungsoo looked at Xuxi and glowered.

“I would like to insist that we speak alone, your royal majesty,” Kyungsoo glared at Xuxi.

“Your majesty?” Xuxi looked over for official confirmation.

“Leave us,” Guanheng ordered. Xuxi nodded and left the emperor’s chambers.

“I read the letter you sent ahead of time, your royal majesty. Your terms are… rather unreasonable, don’t you think?” Kyungsoo asks. Guanheng maintains a straight face, he had to figure out what happened while he was out. “An absolute surrender _and_ annexation? I’m sure you can figure out why I wouldn’t agree to that, right?”

“I figured I’d start bold and we’d work down from there,” Guanheng bluffs. “It should be enough to get your attention.”

“You’re young and inexperienced,” Kyungsoo dismisses. Guanheng frowns. “Although I won’t agree to an absolute surrender, I’ll compromise with an armistice. I’m sure you know why I am unwilling to fully turn myself and my empire over to you, young king.”

“I understand. I will agree to compromise with an armistice.”

“No annexation.”

“Agreed.”

“I would like for you to reopen the trade route to the Republic of Japan.”

“I can do that.”

“And finally… I’d like for you to refrain from sending your refugees and exiles to my empire, we have an overpopulation enough as is. I will not stand idly by and let in every refugee escaping yet _another_ peasant uprising in _your_ kingdom.”

“Pardon?” That caught Guanheng’s attention, he wasn’t aware of any uprisings, actually, let alone exiles.

“Exiles? They always come with orders signed in your name to come here,” Kyungsoo looked annoyed, and rightfully so. “The people were in such desperate need for space and supplies that a genocide of _your_ people occurred in my empire.”

“Surely, you didn’t stand for that,” Guanheng pleads. Kyungsoo’s frown deepens.

“I never intended for such bloodshed, I was open to peace offerings as well, but with the sudden genocides, I was afraid you’d turn it into a call to arms,” Kyungsoo explains.

“I will digress that this turn of events is tragic, to say the least,” Guanheng leans back, picking up the cup of tea before him and staring at the dark liquid inside of it.

“I’m afraid to say that I started it,” Kyungsoo leans back in his throne. “I didn’t think about the consequences of my actions,” he says. Guanheng places the porcelain cup down with a loud _clatter_.

“What did you do?”

“There was one exile, claimed that she knew you, and told me that you were open to peace talks,” Kyungsoo explains. “After she told me that, my entourage was convinced she was a spy, and she was executed the next day. Please know that I didn’t instigate this, my entourage was working on their own accord.” Guanheng straightened his position.

“Who was she?”

“I believe she went by the name (Y/N)?” Guanheng didn’t remember much after that, someone else must have taken over, he thinks. As soon as he heard the name, something changed. He didn’t know who fronted, nor did he care, he just went along with it.

Then, when all was said and done, he was in a jail cell, washing blood off of his arms.

~

You and Xuxi ended up separating halfway through, he left to find Sicheng and Xiaojun, while you left to find Ten and Kun. You had agreed that since you were the less injured, you would handle the East Wing, while Xuxi took care of the milder West Wing. The search had been, for the most part, a waste of time. There were no signs of life as far as you could see, and you felt like a chicken running with your head cut off at this point, but you didn’t want to give up on the others, not yet. Even if you couldn’t get to Yangyang, that wasn’t your fault. You’d make it up to him by getting the others out, it’s not too late for reform.

“(Y/N)!” It was definitely Kun’s voice, but whatever he said afterwards was drowned out by the alarms. You looked amongst the flames until you spotted him, and he ran down the hallway towards you. You squinted your eyes and leaned forward so you could see and hear him better, until you noticed that he was pointing behind you. You turned around and noticed Ten running towards you, then, you heard what Kun was yelling at you. “Run!” You tried to step away, but Ten was able to grab your arm and drag you down some hall.

“Let’s go,” he commanded, Ten held your wrist hard enough to bruise, and he showed no signs of relenting any time soon. You tried to twist your wrist out of Ten’s grasp, but the more you tried to resist, the tighter his grip became. “Stop being difficult, (Y/N), I’m just trying to help you!”

“Ten! What’s wrong with you? There’s something off about you right now!” You tried to pry his hand off of you now, but nothing was working while he pulled you down the hallway. 

“The key, where is it?!”

“I have it!” You tried stopping your feet altogether, but Ten pulled you harshly, causing you to stumble. “Ten!”

“You and I are getting out of here. We’re going back to the station _before_ you got yourself swept up into this mess, and you aren’t going to remember a _single thing_ when we get back,” Ten’s voice was stern. “Now stop being difficult!” Ten jerked you forward again. You recognized this path, you were straight on your way to the emergency exit.

“Wait, but the others—”

“Oh please, (Y/N), for once in your constantly short lived life can you shut up and listen?!” Ten demeaned. You clenched your jaw, completely shocked at the way he was acting.

“Who the fuck are you?!”

“Quit complaining already, damn,” Ten argues. “Always so fucking difficult,” Ten exasperates.

“But I don’t want to forget anything,” you argued back. Ten looks back at you and rolls his eyes.

“You don’t have a fucking choice, (Y/N). These timelines literally _ride_ off of you. And (Y/N), I’m sick and tired of going back constantly and saving your ass only for you to run off with another—”

Time was slowing down again, was it just you or was it the Sector? Did it matter? Someone was pulling you back, wasn’t he? He grabbed onto the back of your shirt and tugged you back right as someone else drove a knife into Ten’s side.

“You good?” Xuxi.

“Stop! Stop!” You ran over to Kunhang and wrapped your arms around his shoulders, pulling him away from Ten. You looked down at the previous Warden but… even if he wanted to leave, he couldn’t now. The sound that came out of Ten was more animal than human, and the rusted bolt that protruded from his leg wasn’t one you wanted to dwell on for too long. Ten pulled the knife out of his chest and swung towards Guanheng, and right before the knife could get remotely close to Guanheng, Xuxi grabbed onto Ten’s wrist, holding it in place.

“Go!” Xuxi stepped onto the stab wound on Ten’s chest and pushed down on it. He looked over to you.

“He’s not worth saving, (Y/N),” he shouts. You looked down at Ten while you were running, what was that in his eyes? Was it sorrow? Remorse? Anger? No, none of those were true, were they? It wasn’t something you were used to seeing, especially in Ten, but that was _desperation_. What was it that we was trying to say to you before they came? “Hurry up!”

“I’m going, I’m going!” You turned your back on Ten and ran faster. Whoever that was on the floor, whose blood stained the floor with the fire faster than it spilled out, wasn’t someone you knew. It was, at most, a stranger. “Kunhang! Be careful!” You pulled him away from the burning walls. But he continued to run in a swerved manner, occasionally slowing down to regain his balance, and catching up to you in the end, then you finally saw it, the door to salvation. You ran towards it and pulled on the doorknob, dragging the both of you in and locking it behind you, not even a few minutes later, someone started banging on the door, and you had no clue who or _what_ it was, but it snarled like a beast and it clawed like a demon. Ten came your worst fear, as the door started to bang through its hinges, he separated himself from your side and pushed himself on the door, keeping whatever feral being outside and, meanwhile, you fell onto the floor and scooted as far away from the door as possible.

Not soon enough, the chaos stopped, and you were forced to come to terms with the deafening silence, save for the shallow breaths that came from both you and him, that surrounded you. He slid down the door, still leaning against it and ready to act if whatever was out there tried to get in again. You looked down at your hand on your chest, it was clutching onto your locket tightly, you must have subconsciously hoped for it to keep you safe. He wasn’t looking at you again, instead busying himself with the ceiling above him. With shaky legs, you stood up and walked to the metal box and, with equally shaky hands, you pushed the silver key into the box and twisted without hesitation.

But nothing happened.

You looked behind you and he looked as confused as you were. He pressed his ear to the door to make sure no one was going to try to break in and stood up, approaching the box. He grabbed ahold of the key and twisted it but, again, no dice.

“Kunhang… what are we going to do?” You stumbled back with slight disbelief. He stares at you with a confused look, before trying again, then he tried it counter-clockwise, then he tried pushing the key first before turning, but there was no change. When you heard a thud against the door again, you scrambled away, and, not willing to give up, he kept trying to twist the key.

“Are you okay?” He asks you. His voice was softer, and he looked more composed than before.

“Kunhang?”

“Hold on, don’t talk to me right now,” Kunhang’s sentences were labored with tiredness. He continued trying to twist the key, but no matter how much he turned, it would still prove to be fruitless. “What is up with this thing?!” He kicks the box harshly before persisting.

“Kunhang… it’s fine, don’t waste your time,” you sighed. He looked up at you and shook his head.

“No, no way,” he huffed, pushing on the key. “Fuck I wish Xuxi was here…” he curses.

“Kunhang, stop it.”

“No, I won’t—”

“It’s not worth it, Kunhang!”

“I finally get you back after forever, (Y/N)!” He shouts. “I finally get to see you again, I’ve finally decided to take control of myself and stop being a shitty, and now I have all of this to deal with!” He throws his hands in the air before trying the key again.

“So _no_ , (Y/N), I’m not going to stop it. It’s time for us to go home, your exile period is up, and I know that because I’m the damn idiot who signed it! (Y/N), please, just let me bring you home to the stupid kingdom, let me take you back to our life, (Y/N), you don’t have to be separated from us anymore! I’m _sick_ and _tired_ of being the only one who remembers how you left and I’m _done_ with feeling like you left us because of some horrible thing that one of us did,” he kicks the metal box again. “I’m the only one who remembers that shit, (Y/N)! The others knew you left but they don’t remember why, they don’t remember how it happened, and I do, and I’m _sick_ of it. I didn’t do anything, (Y/N). I just watched them take you away, I watched them lock you in the carriage, and I didn’t do a _single_ thing, and now I live knowing that every day, no matter how many times I try to convince myself that it was your choice to leave, I know the truth…” he was shaking now, and you were too. You didn’t know what he was talking about, and you were too afraid to ask.

“Hey…” you approached him slowly now.

“They didn’t even know about me… they didn’t acknowledge me until you left, did you know that? I was so desperate to be known by the system I did the worst possible thing to it, and I charged you for treason and had you sent off into enemy territory. You must think I’m a horrible person, don’t you?” He asks you. “And they hate me, which makes sense, I guess. At least let me do one right by them, let me take you home and end your exile, (Y/N), I’m sure one of them will fix everything in the end,” Kunhang pulled the key out and pushed it back into the box, turning it both ways. You put your hand over his and pulled it away from the box, instead pulling him into your arms. Kunhang stood stiff, not knowing what to do, but soon he relaxed and you both stayed like that for a long while.

“No one hates you… and I certainly don’t,” you whispered. “It’s okay now, just relax… tell me about your timeline, Kunhang, I’m sure it must be wonderful, right?” At this point it was time you both accepted your fates. It had to have been the fire, maybe it messed with the circuits. You just wanted to get both of your minds away from the inevitable.

“Nothing like this one,” he says, there was something about him that was different. “It was so different, technology wasn’t as advanced there as it is here, the concept of prison is different, moon colonies didn’t exist, and… war. Always.”

“Mmhmm…” you rubbed his back carefully, trying to keep him calm. “

“You were there too,” you weren’t speaking to Kunhang anymore, you were sure of that. “I don’t remember much about you anymore, though,” he laughs sadly.

“That’s okay… I don’t remember you at all,” you tried to lighten the mood, but you could tell that you might have just made it worse.

“I do remember one thing,” he says after a brief pause.

“Hmm?” He pulled away from you and you looked into his eyes. They were softer now, his expression was more relaxed, more content. Guanheng.

“It’s rather random, I think, and a bit insensitive… But you hated ginseng tea,” he said. “It was the one thing you refused to drink, so I made sure it was never in the castle. Ben and Nana thought that was the reason why you didn’t come back, they thought it was because you could sense it from miles away and that you wanted to stay away that badly,” he mumbles. You clenched your jaw, feeling that something was amiss. You stumbled slightly, but Guanheng didn’t catch onto it, he was too preoccupied with the box now. You held onto it, feeling the barren room spinning one every axis possible and, through your blurred vision, you noticed Guanheng push the key into the box again and, for the last time, he turned it. Then, your blurred vision turned into blinding light.

~

“No, no, over here please, Father!” You ran up to your dad and guided him to the front pews. “We’re keeping the calla lilies here, roses in the back, Father,” you reminded him. He nodded and called over the other florists to follow suit. You released a small sigh of relief when you walked to the back of the chapel to see how everything was coming together.

“Aren’t you supposed to be getting ready?” Guanheng approached you from behind and leaned down next to you.

“Goodness,” you jumped slightly. “Don’t scare me like that, Guanheng,” you laughed.

“I couldn’t resist,” he takes a ranunculus from an incoming florist and tucks it behind your ear. “But really, I thought Yuqi was taking care of this.”

“Well… about that,” you pointed behind you and Guanheng was able to make out the faint sounds of an argument. “An emergency came up with the officiator, so she’s looking for another one right now and I volunteered to handle the decor,” you told him.

“Is that so,” he hums.

“How about you? Isn’t it bad luck to see the bride before the wedding?”

“That’s just superstition from Yuqi’s kingdom,” he teases. “Plus, didn’t it state that you had to be in your dress?”

“Did it? I don’t remember,” you trail off in a thought. “What time is it, beloved?”

“Half-past two.”

“That late? Oh god, I need to get ready.”

“That you do,” Guanheng places a hand on your waist and walks you to the bridal chamber, opening it slowly so as not to disturb Yuqi, and bidding you a silent goodbye before you closed the door. A smile appeared on Guanheng’s face while he walked away.

When the light had subsided, Guanheng found himself standing in this very chapel hours before Xuxi’s and Yuqi’s wedding, with the strange messenger standing before him and holding an unopened letter. Guanheng took the letter and immediately threw it away, knowing full well what opening it would’ve implied for his future. And from there everything seemed to work out nicely, save for the fact that you had no recollection of the events that happened prior in the Sector, not that Guanheng was complaining though, he was more than glad to know that you didn’t have that trauma.

Four years later, things have begun taking a turn for the best. His first order of business was with the Council, he took every precaution to be sure that you were to never be exiled in the first place. He had successfully negotiated peace with the Empire of Korea, issuing a new era to both areas and ensuring a stable future. And next he had found an expert to help him with his condition, one that seemed all too familiar, and one that he knew he would have to get used to. But, at this time and moment, Dr. Qian was the only one who could treat his condition, and he would have to come to terms with that and, after four years, Guanheng had become somewhat fully integrated, save for a few alters who, for now, desire resolution above integration, and Guanheng could only agree and work with what he had. Everything was looking up for him despite the hard times, and he had never felt any better.

However, four years later you are still plagued with nightmares of that day. You had detailed to him a nightmare in which you saw Xuxi kill a man with his bare hands, you had detailed to him a nightmare of a technologically advanced prison that trapped you and other faceless inmates, and Guanheng knew that there was something amiss, there was some greater force at play, and he was going to be sure that they were well taken care of. 

And that begins with this silver key.

Guanheng stood at the edge of the hill overlooking the kingdom and the sea next to it, he had to be honest, he wanted to wring the neck of whoever’s idea it was to put a wedding chapel at the top of a hill, but the view wasn’t something Guanheng could say he didn’t like. He stared at the silver key in his hands, it served as a reminder to him, and now it was just a piece of silver. He pushed his left hand into his pocket and played with it in his right for a brief moment before drawing his hand back. He held it there for a while, now looking over the ocean that was just beyond the walls of the kingdom, and took a moment to let the scenery calm him.

Then, with no regrets, he threw the silver key out into the ocean.

But you, even on your best day, your nightmares came back to you, and you were haunted by the single phrase:

**_You can only save one.’_ **


	16. Lucifer [Ten Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 13.0K
> 
> Notes: Hi all! It’s been awhile, hasn’t it? Unfortunately, I’m not entirely out of hiatus yet, but, as you all know, I’ve had all the endings ready since even before I posted Ch. 1 of Zemblanity. Ten’s ending happened to be one of the most anticipated ones too, and I felt rather bad for making you all wait, so here it is! I hope it was well worth the wait. This is the longest ending, I believe. So I hope you all have a ride with this one. Many questions will be answered, and maybe some new ones will arise. I made the creative choice to keep some things ambiguous when it came to Zemblanity, I always loved reading what you all thought about what happened, so I think I’ll stick with that theme for some questions. However, there is a question that not many have asked, but it a lot more important than you’d think, and it will be answered in Yangyang’s ending, hehe, so I hope you all look forward to it! But enough rambling from me, time to get on with the ending!
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Violence, Murder, Death, Graphic Depictions of Gore, Graphic Depictions of Murder, Implied Sex, Obsessive Behavior, Stalking, Implications of an Unhealthy Relationship, Toxic Behavior, Controlling Behavior, Mentions of Alcohol, Blood, Guns, Gun Violence, Knives, Knife Violence, Instances of Manipulation, Psychotic Behavior, Mild Gaslighting

“Ten!” You ran up to him, books and laptop in hand. “We’ve been looking all over for you, come on, we have to show up to this lecture or else we’re gonna fail the final!” You stopped right next to him and sighed. Ten laid down on the small hillside, his arms behind his head and his eyes closed, he was breathing slowly and his glasses were on top of his own textbooks.

“I swear, anyone could just steal those,” Kun laughed. He crouched down next to his friend and pushed his shoulder lightly. “Ten. You’d better wake up now before (Y/N) pushes you down this hill,” he chuckles. Ten’s eyes shoot open and he sits up while he stretches his hands above his head.

“I’m up, I’m up,” he yawns. “Can’t you guys just take notes for me? I’m too tired to go to calc…”

“No way,” you deadpanned. Ten grabbed Kun’s hand and let him pull him up.

“Fine,” Ten rolled his eyes. “But only because I don’t want to fail, and if I do, I know that _both_ of you won’t let me live it down,” Ten admits. He picks up his glasses and slides them on.

For as long as he could remember, it was always like this. The three of you. Ten, Kun, and (Y/N). For as long as he could remember, it was always you three that were together. You were all neighbors, your parents were all close, and oftentimes you would all end up talking together anyway. It was like this for basically your entire lives, and the friendship just stuck together even through college. Sometimes Ten wondered if he should just branch out, but he couldn’t help but miss the trio if he was gone for even a few hours. There was something about the dynamic, your sweet personality, Kun’s mature one, and his own mischievous self, it all worked together nicely.

“Wait, I’m tired, (Y/N), let’s grab a coffee,” Ten offers.

“It’s three p.m., Ten,” you said with a flat expression. “Go by yourself.”

“C’mon, (Y/N), you know Ten,” Kun nudges your side. “I’ll save us seats.”

“Thanks,” you said while Ten dragged you off with him towards the nearest cafe. You watched Kun wave at you two before he turned around and walked off towards your class. “Am I going to have to pay again?”

“Nah, this one’s on me,” he says. He pulls open the door and lets you in first, and as soon as you were in you both stood in line together and ordered your drinks. True to his words, Ten paid for your drink, and you made sure to get the biggest size on the menu just to mess with him.

“You actually bought it,” you snickered.

“I mean, it’s the least I could do, you always do so much for me,” Ten rolls his eyes. You nodded and sighed.

“Yeah… I do,” you trailed off. Ten bent over slightly and looked at your face. He put his hands in his pockets and shook his head. “What’s up?”

“Is there something bothering you, (Y/N)?”

“You know me too well, don’t you, Ten?” You smiled nervously. “I can’t keep anything from you.”

“No way,” Ten laughs. “So, spill.”

“Ugh… fine,” you grumbled. “I was talking with a few of my other friends and they were absolutely sick of me complaining that I’m single, so they set me up with a blind date.”

Ten’s smile dropped momentarily, but he quickly turned the corners of his lips upwards when you looked back up at him.

“And…?”

“Do you think you can help me out? You know I suck at dating, Ten.”

“Nah,” it came out faster than he expected it to. Your expression dropped.

“Oh, that’s alright. Classes, right?”

“Mmhmm.”

“Ah, it’s a good thing I asked first then,” you played with your hair absentmindedly.

“Ten! Two coffees here!” The barista announced.

“I’ve got it,” you walked over to the counter quickly and picked up the two large drinks.

Ten watched you chat with the barista for a bit while you were picking up the drinks. He shook his head slightly, when were you going to catch on? He felt like he’d done everything at this point, he’s dropped all the hints, but you’re not catching onto any of them. Maybe he was being too careful about it? Maybe he wasn’t playing his cards right? God, how long has he felt this way about you? Years, almost. Maybe it was during your junior year of high school when he figured it out. He had always wondered why other people never caught his attention, after who knows how long and after so many failed dates, he figured that he just wasn’t the type to make a serious relationship, and kept things fickle between hookups. But when he really got to know you he realized the truth. It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested in romance, it was that he was interested in _you_. And when he heard that you were going to go to his university? He was ecstatic. Over the moon, even. He had to admit, sometimes he’d let his mind wander too much when it came to you, but good god he wasn’t willing to risk your friendship for silly feelings.

“Ten?” You waved your hand in front of his face and he snapped out of his thoughts. “There you are,” you said in a small voice. You picked up his coffee and handed it to him.

“Thanks.”

“To calc we go!” Now it was your turn to pull him out of the cafe.

“Hey, do you happen to know the name of the guy you’re going on a blind date with?”

“Hmm? Why do you want to know?”

“Well, I’ve been here longer than you have, maybe I know him.”

“Oh, in that case…” you hummed. “Huang Xuxi. He’s in engineering, so I don’t think you’d know him actually…”

“Yeah, I have no clue who he is,” Ten shook his head. “I’m just in criminal justice, our departments are pretty far apart…”

“That’s what I thought,” you laughed awkwardly.

“But I can’t help but feel like I’ve heard the name before,” Ten hums.

“Oh, my friend said that he’s really into photography and has taken a few classes on it, and I’m pretty sure you’ve mentioned that you’ve taken some of those too, right? Maybe you used to be classmates,” you suggested. “Either way, thanks for the effort though, Ten. Just wish me luck, yeah?” You gave him a bright smile.

“Always,” Ten ruffled your hair lightly. You both walked into the lecture hall and spotted Kun sitting near the middle of the lecture hall. He waved you two over and you took your seats right as the lecture began. You and Kun were having your own conversation while Ten got lost in his thoughts. Huang Xuxi, the name was actually familiar. He probably had a mutual friend who mentioned him at one point now that he thought about it. Where’s the harm in looking this guy up, anyway? Who knows, maybe he’s a really sketchy person? And it would be bad if he just let you go on your own without knowing anything, after all. But at the same time he didn’t want to be overbearing, you’re an adult now, you’re more than aware of the safeties and dangers of a blind date.

Right?

He glanced at you secretly, not wanting to bother you. You were so sweet, such a trusting person. Was Ten being too much for worrying about your safety? Surely this is normal, feeling worried for someone he’s known for so long. Especially when you just happened to be the person who’s been the center of his attention for so long, he wouldn’t want you to change the way you viewed him at all.

“(Y/N)?”

“Yeah, Ten?” You and Kun looked slightly surprised at the sudden interruption.

“When’s your blind date?”

“Oh, haha, tonight at eight actually, we’re meeting at that restaurant across the residence hall.”

“Is that so?” He hums. “Yeah, I’m busy.”

“Aww, that’s fine,” you nudged his arm playfully. The professor continues to lecture and the trio falls back into silence, taking notes carefully. But again Ten’s mind wandered to this blind date of yours, he couldn’t help but feel worried. What if this guy ended up being a complete jerk? What if he just wasn’t the _it_ person for you? What if he treated you like complete shit? But what really got him rolling was the fact that even if any of those three occurred, you wouldn’t care. You were just so desperate to love and be loved that you’d play right into his hands. You’d _willingly_ let this ‘Huang Xuxi’ treat you like crap just so you could have the rush of being in a relationship. He _knows_ you’d be like that, and he couldn’t just let that happen, could he? There’s no way. He can’t leave you alone in this. He has to intervene. He has to— “Ten?” You lowered your head and whispered to him so as not to disturb the lecture.

“Huh?”

“Are you alright? You haven’t written anything for the past five minutes…” you mumbled, sharing worried glances with Kun.

“Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” Ten shakes his head and thanks you quietly when you slid your notes to him.

He had a whole plan detailed out. He was going to search the guy up on Instagram or whatever, size him up for what kind of guy he is. He was going to sit a few tables away from you and your date, he was going to put on a disguise and everything just to make sure you were okay. He was going to wait it out and see how you reacted to the date and everything. And all of this did occur, he found Huang Xuxi to be a rather average college student, your basic run-of-the-mill frat boy with oddly high grades. When it came time for the date, you didn’t catch onto him, in fact, you looked like you were having a general good time with Huang Xuxi. He paid the bill and everything, walked you home, and left things in the air for a second date. It all went smoothly.

So how did he get here?

To this point?

Standing over Huang Xuxi’s body with a twisted smile on his face?

He should be scared, right? Shouldn’t he be shaking in his shoes right about now? Ten felt every drop of blood slide down his arms, but _god_ he had never felt more alive, with the way Huang Xuxi’s blood had splattered across the street, or the way that some of it had found its way onto Ten’s glasses, he just felt so ecstatic. He covered his mouth, the stench of iron filling his senses, but he couldn’t stop _smiling_. Ten took a step back from the body and fully comprehended what he had just done. He just killed someone at the side of the road, surely someone would find the body soon enough. Ten looked around him, making sure there were no cameras that could have caught him in the act, then back at the horribly mutilated body. It was just so _messy_ , Ten couldn’t believe that he did that. But there was something rather artistic to it, wasn’t there? The way his blood framed the asphalt beneath him, it was almost beautiful. Ten reached into his messenger bag and pulled out a camera, it was rather retro in nature, he had only bought it to complete an assignment way back when, but now seemed rather fitting to use it. He aimed the camera and pressed on the shutter, hearing the satisfying click and seeing the fulfilling flash of the old camera, then he lowered it down and stared at the body again. Ten shook himself out of his senses and grabbed the kitchen knife he had used, slid both it and the camera into his bag, and crouched next to the dead body, a small laugh rising in his throat. He covered one side of his face with his hand while his body shook with laughter.

You were safe now.

You didn’t have to worry about Huang Xuxi ever breaking your heart if he never had it, right?

He slid back into his car, not even caring to bring the body with him, and removed his bloodied jacket, placing it into the plastic bag he kept in his passenger’s seat for emergencies. He buckled himself in and right before he pulled away, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and stared at the message on the screen.

‘The date went well! Don’t worry about not helping out, I just had Kun help me haha!! I’ll tell you the details tomorrow! I had so much fun!’

Ten rested his forehead against the steering wheel for a moment, that same twisted smile on his face.

You were safe now, because of _him_ , your savior and hero, _him_. Ten started to chuckle to himself again, yes, he liked the way that sounded. You were _his_ , after all, he had to make sure you were safe at all times, he _had_ to. You were so delicately naive and fragile, he couldn’t let even the nicest of people take advantage of you, you were just so easily swayed that he had to protect you somehow. Yes, you’d never be able to handle yourself, you needed to be protected.

You needed _him._

~

When you stepped out of the door, still clutching onto the dull locket, you found yourself in the Warden’s Office. The ticking of the wall clock mocked you as always, and any sign of fire was far away from you.

“(Y/N)!” Ten looked surprised to see you. “What are you doing here?!”

You looked at him, and you looked back down at your locket. You said the keyword, but nothing happened. You don’t remember anything new, you don’t think you forgot anything either, and you genuinely felt the same as usual. You looked over to Ten, who was tied to the chair with various cuts and bruises around his body, and then you remembered the gravity of the situation, and you quickly walked towards him, trying to untie the ropes.

“Who did this to you?!” Your voice was shaky while you were trying to undo the knot.

“Who do you think? Xuxi, Kunhang, and Sicheng,” Ten answers. You immediately think back to the mentioned three inmates, and you could clearly imagine them doing such horrible things to Ten, you must have been an idiot to think that they could change, why did you fool yourself for so long? Why did you do that to yourself?

“I shouldn’t have left you…”

“Hey, hey,” he speaks quietly. “It’s okay, calm down, (Y/N).” He was acting completely different from the Ten you had just seen hours ago, the one who pounced out of his cell just to attack the other inmates. He had to have been so upset, you didn’t even want to imagine the hell he’s been through since your dumb ass got stuck in the Sector, he must have had to go through so much with the Council and even with himself just because of your stupid curiosity. You didn’t blame him for snapping at you when he had been released from the cell.

Right… the _cell_.

He was only in there because of you.

Your vision blurred with tears and you took in labored breaths. This was all your fault, wasn’t it? You stopped trying to undo the knot behind Ten and leaned your forehead against his back, trying to calm yourself down. Ten sighed in front of you.

“It’s okay, (Y/N), I’m not mad at you, if that’s what you’re thinking,” he says. “I’m just glad that you’re okay, (Y/N). I was so worried about you while I was in the station, I was afraid fo what the other inmates would do to you, but you look like you’re alright for the most part, are you?” His voice was soft while he tried to calm you down.

“I’m not alright,” you choked back a sob while you tried to undo the knot again. “I missed you so much… I’m so sorry, Ten, this is all my fault… If I wasn’t so stupid then we’d still be back in the station, maybe getting dinner together or staring at the stars like we always did… but instead, we’re here, in a Sector that’s about to burn down and suck us all into the endless vacuum of space… and I can’t even undo this _stupid_ knot,” you tugged at the knot angrily and hit your head against his back softly.

“I’m a pathetic excuse of a best friend,” you cried.

“Don’t say that, (Y/N),” Ten says. He looks over at the shelf. “Listen to me carefully now, if you want to make it up to me, I need you to do exactly as I say, alright?”

“Mmhmm…”

“Good girl,” Ten looks at you and smiles. “You see that shelf over there? There’s a red button underneath it, press and hold that for five seconds,” he instructs. You nodded your head slowly and did as he said, and once you released the button, the shelf pushed into the wall and slid into the wall and revealed the compartment behind it.

“What’s this?”

“You really think the Warden wouldn’t have weapons hidden somewhere?” Ten asks. “Grab the knife, it should be sharp enough to cut through the ropes,” he says. You looked at the small collection of shelves, a strange collection of weapons on them. A small pistol, for one, with the tag TL1 on it. Or a traditional sword and a matching revolver with the tags TL5 adorning them. They didn’t look like they belonged together, any of the weapons for that matter. But when Ten cleared his throat you took the knife labeled TL6 into your hands and hummed.

“A kitchen knife?”

“Yup.”

“Oh, okay,” you walked back to him and began to cut the ropes. “Ten? Can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot.”

“Do you… do you remember the past timelines?”

“Which ones?”

“The ones that matter…” you mumbled.

“I had to do it in a roundabout way, but yeah. For the most part, I do,” he rolls his neck slowly. “I don’t think you’d understand it if I explained it to you, it involved multiple different factors. Why?”

“Oh… because Xiaojun mentioned that he accidentally activated the paradox item that was meant for you… so I wondered if you were able to regain your memories,” you sliced through another rope.

“Truth be told, I think I’ve remembered the events of the past timeline since the beginning,” Ten admits. “I used to have these strange dreams about being one of the inmates, turns out they weren’t just silly fantasies.” 

“What made you remember in the end?” You asked him.

“I don’t think you want to know that, (Y/N),” he murmurs. You cut through another rope and, as soon as they dropped to the ground, Ten exhaled out of relief and hunched over, covering his face for a moment, before sitting back up and smiling at you.

“Thank you.”

“Yeah, of course. What was I supposed to do? Leave you like that?” You frowned. “Now what are we going to do about these?” You turned his face slightly and ghosted your thumb over the large gash on the side of his face.

“Curtesy of the chained demon.”

“Sicheng did this?”

“I’m sure you’ve seen that he can get rather violent,” Ten stands up from his spot and walks over to the mirror on the side, observing the damage and grimacing. He walks over to the shelf and pulls out the handgun, making sure it’s loaded before he pushes it into his pocket. “Let’s go. Stay close, there’s no telling what state of mind the inmates are in, we need to get to the Communications Room,” Ten explains.

“There’s a Communications Room?” you followed closely behind him and into the corridor. The fire was raging somewhere far away from the office.

“How else do you think the Warden knows who’s coming in?”

“I kind of… I just assumed that you got a call.”

“Well, I guess it’s kind of like that,” Ten guided you towards the West Wing, away from the fire, and through a series of twists and turns down various hallways, and finally stopped at what looked like another cell door, he took out the infamous red card and swiped it through, guiding you in first before he followed, shutting it behind him. The room was dark, for the most part, with a series of screens and buttons lining the room and a large window at the front overlooking the Earth. It felt like years since you had seen it, surrounded by all of the stars and in all of its glory, it was a sight to see, and one you missed dearly. But in this room was something you didn’t expect to see. “Yangyang.”

“Yo,” the other inmate waved absently while he was working on one of the computers. You walked over to him.

“What are you doing?” You asked him.

“Sabotaging that bastard’s master plan,” Yangyang smiles. “Ugh, that _Xiaojun_ , he thought he was so smart,” Yangyang shook his head. He handed you a paper and you skimmed over it quickly.

“How did you get this? This is the page Sicheng and I tore out of Xiaojun’s notebook.”

“Sicheng gave it to me,” Yangyang continues typing away. “Wow, and he almost got away with it too, that son of a bitch.” You held the paper to the dim overhead light, trying to make sense of the scribbles on it.

“You’re lying…” Your mouth hung slightly agape. “He started the fire? But that’s not possible, I was with him the entire time before it even began,” you continued.

“It was the Boiler Room, all he would have to do is turn the dial just enough to overload one of the pipes, and he would know how much to turn in order to overfill it to the point of bursting,” Ten explains.

“Because of that time he depleted the oxygen in the Sector,” Yangyang says.

“That was a key event,” you put the paper down, “he said he was trying to avoid those.”

“(Y/N), you’re so dense,” Ten stares at you. “He was making sure the key events happened so you would show up in the Sector. And once you appeared in the Sector, he’d off every single one of us and drag you out of the Sector himself. And if you don’t believe me, look at that paper again,” Ten gestures to the paper that had fallen to the ground.

“I tried to find the rest of the journal, but the crafty bastard hid it before I could get to it, it's probably burnt to a crisp by now,” he grumbles. “So… I’m subjecting him to eternal suffering,” Yangyang chuckles. You and Ten looked at the screen.

“Hey, hey, hey! You weren’t supposed to send one to _all_ of us, you dumb idiot,” Ten shoves Yangyang away and tries to undo the action.

“But it would be so lonely without the others,” Yangyang looked distraught. You looked back to the screen and saw seven ‘SENT’ commands throughout the screen to different timelines.

“Are you stupid?! This could cause a time loop, I just asked you to send yourself and Xiaojun’s to keep him in the loop and keep everyone else out, that would stop his plan from even happening and it was _supposed_ to reset this timeline!” Ten slams his hand on the empty space next to the keyboard.

“Ten. I was just kidding, it didn’t let me send only two, the command would only go through if I sent it to all seven of us,” Before Ten could respond, a loud crash emits from outside the door. “I’ll go check that out,” Yangyang exited the room, leaving you and Ten alone. After a few minutes of silence, Ten broke it.

“You missed this, didn’t you?” You followed his gaze to the window.

“Yeah, I did,” the view wasn’t as pretty as the one from the moon station, but it was still one that you cherished nicely. The door opens again and you expected Yangyang to come bounding in, but he didn’t.

“Ten, I did what you asked, and I brought the first aid kit too,” Kun walked up next to you and did a small double-take. “What’s she doing here?”  


“What do you think? I brought her here, obviously,” Ten types away at the antiquated computer, trying to undo the damage that Yangyang had done. “How’d it go? Did the system take to it nicely?”

“It did, surprisingly,” Kun crosses his arms. “Safety protocols, by the way, (Y/N). In about five minutes it should kick in, and hopefully, it’ll stop the fire before anyone else dies,” he explains.

“Anyone else?”

“Saw Xuxi trapped under a pile of steel,” Kun’s voice was stern while he watched what Ten was doing. He reached into his jacket and handed Ten a familiar journal. “I was able to swipe this right before the fire started,” he says. Ten takes it and flips around, reading through the handwriting quickly while waiting for the system to reload. Ten shut the notebook and placed it off to the side, standing up from the chair and leaning against the console afterward.

“I was originally planning on getting everyone but Xiaojun out but… I see that might be rather _difficult_ given the circumstances.” He sighed, shaking his head. “(Y/N), come over here,” he looks over at Kun and gestures for you to come closer. You obeyed skeptically and glanced over at Kun briefly, both of you were reasonably confused. Ten held his hand out and you put yours in it hesitantly, then he grabbed your upper forearm.

“Ten!” Kun’s voice was sharp, but before he could do anything, Ten’s grip on your arm grew stronger, and you knew exactly what he was going to do. You tried to yank your arm away,but Ten kept increasing pressure until, finally, Kun pulled him off of you. You yanked your arm away from both of them and stepped back.

“Why would you do that?!” You screamed, massaging the area softly. Ten looked at his wristwatch and started the timer.

“We need to achieve the last key event. Then we’d have exactly fifteen minutes left to get you out before Yangyang comes back, locks you in a room, and snaps your neck.”

“What?!”

“That’s what happened in TL8, at least, either way, Yangyang _will_ kill you some way, and I’ve seen it happen so many different times. Hell, I’ve seen him kill you with something as simple as a _Rolex_ watch because the fucking kid’s a _psychopath_ in this timeline. Every key event happens one way or another, but if we do it this way we will stop Xiaojun’s plan from happening since Yangyang _fucked up_ and put us in a time loop. To put things into terms your simple brains will understand, in every possible timeline, (Y/N) will end up in the Sector regardless, and if things continue to play out the way the original timeline did then there’s no hope for the loop,” Ten clicks his tongue, he turns around and stares at the console, watching an array of letters and numbers race across the screens. “Do you understand why we need to execute the next key event, (Y/N)?” At that moment, Kun walked to you slowly and tapped your shoulder, making subtle gestures for you two to get out of the room. You nodded your head slowly and you both started to back away while Ten was mumbling incoherent nothings while waiting for your response. Kun nudged his head towards Ten and you nodded again.

“Yeah, I understand,” you lied, continuing to take steps backward. Your back was nearly pressed against the wall now while Kun kept his hand on the doorknob, silently asking you if you were ready to run, when you mouthed a quiet yes, Kun spoke up.

“You’re like Lucifer on the moon, Ten,” he pulled the door open and you both ran out, Kun slammed the door behind him and you were both making a mad dash towards the East Wing. You were just turning the corner when you heard the door open and crash into the wall next to it, but you opted to keep your sights forward.

“Kun…” You grabbed onto his arm while you felt your head start to spin. Kun slowed to a walking pace.

“What’s wrong?”

“My head’s killing me…” you let go of him and he led you into a room, closing it quietly in hopes that Ten wouldn’t find the two of you there. You sat leaned against the wall and started massaging your temples while the dark Records Room contorted, the details began blurring and the noises in the Sector began to mute themselves. It felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to your brain and decided to grind it into nothing.

“Hey, take deep breaths,” Kun held onto your shoulders while you blacked out.

~

Ten drank from his coffee, looking across the table to you and Kun, who were both studying silently. Both of you seemed tense, while Ten was completely relaxed. Though he did understand why you were both so serious, what with the usually filled-to-the-brim café being dead empty, the atmosphere was rather eerie. The barista behind the counter knocked over a trash can and you jumped in your seat.

“Are you alright?” Kun asks you. You nodded your head slowly and Ten put his book down.

“I’m not really sure why everyone’s making a big deal about this,” he sighs.

“Not making a big deal? Ten. Someone died,” Kun frowns.

“And? People die every day.”

“It was just so gruesome…” you mumbled, rubbing your arms up and down slowly. “And to think that I was just talking to him an hour before too… it’s just so bizarre, you know?”

“I guess,” Ten reopens his book. “But it was just one murder, I’m sure there won’t be more,” he finishes quickly. 

“They’re calling him Lucifer, you know,” Kun taps his pencil on his notebook. “The killer left his book there.” Now Ten sat tautly.

“What book?”

“ _I, Lucifer_ , by Glen David Duncan.”

“That’s good, so they got his prints then?” Ten asks, he had to relax himself, he couldn’t make you feel any more worried than you already are.

“Nope, the person who found the body panicked and burned it… the book going along with it,” Kun sighs.

“Some people can be so dumb,” Ten rolls his eyes. “But why burn it?”

“Probably didn’t want to be associated with it, they only found out there was a murder because someone across the street reported the fire,” Kun continues. “Needless to say, they put the guy in custody but…” Kun just shakes his head and goes back to his notes.

“I’d rather not talk about it… please…” you mumbled, drinking your coffee silently.

The sudden murder had a good majority of the campus reeling. Everyone was suddenly afraid, everyone was going home early and making sure to lock their doors, it all caused a bout of fear, and truly it was all rather bothersome to Ten. He almost wanted to say that he did it so that everyone would stop being annoying about it, but he knew better. If he was thrown in jail then who’d be here to keep you safe? The detectives had questioned you on everything you knew, since you were the last person to see Huang Xuxi alive, and it took a great toll on you. But it couldn’t be avoided, Ten understood. But the truth was in the spotlight, there was no way to link you to the crime.

Ten had to admit, that night sparked something animalistic in him. This strange feeling of knowing that you had to be protected, and him knowing that he was the only one who was able to do it, it was all so _invigorating_. But the true thrill of it was doing it all without your knowledge, you had no clue that he was the one keeping you safe, and he preferred to keep it that way, your blissful ignorance is what kept your untouched innocence so pure, after all, and he just wanted to be sure that you kept that.

The next victim after Huang Xuxi was Xiao Dejun, a classmate of yours who was assigned on a project with you. He had kept you in his apartment late in order to finish, and that was just so dangerous. He had kept her in his apartment late in order to finish, and that was just so dangerous. There’s no telling what would go through a man’s mind with a woman inside of his home, right? Ten should know, the things his brain had tormented him with when you decided to stay the night, it was almost too much. And to think that someone else might be having those fantasies of _you_? That’s unacceptable. Ten couldn’t let that happen, it was much too perilous for you. So he paid him a visit the next night, clutching that same knife he used on Huang Xuxi. It was strange, when Xiao Dejun opened his door and saw Ten waiting, it was like he knew. That fucker _knew_. Then, Ten felt another chord snap in him and, before he knew it, there was a new masterpiece splayed out on the wall before him. The beautiful array of scarlet that scattered the cream walls just perfectly, Ten pulled out his camera and took a picture. He still hasn’t developed the film from when he took Huang Xuxi’s picture, and he figured he’d do it when he got home, maybe. Or maybe he’d never develop them at all, he’d figure it out later in the car.

Now the campus was really having a field day, two murders done in the same fashion? Surely they were just coincidence, right? The University let out a hasty statement, telling all of the students to exercise precaution and always carry some form of self defense in order to stay safe should they have to leave their homes late at night. An official police investigation on this so-called _Lucifer_ was then expedited, focusing on trying to find a link between the two crimes. They were rather surprised to see that you were linked to them again but, just like before, your clear alibi canceled you from the equation; however, Ten was starting to grow weary of the prodigy detective assigned to the case, this Liu Yangyang. Ten had a feeling he’d be a problem, but as long as he was careful, he’d be able to slip under his nose easily.

Next was Dong Sicheng, who was a boy who, quite literally, bumped into you. That, naturally, didn’t fly by with Ten. Who would do that to you? Who would be in such a hurry that they bump into you? It almost disgusted Ten. It was just so _brash_ and _barbaric_ , surely someone so horrible didn’t deserve to live, right? Ten felt justified in killing this one, it was just so easy. He did run though, Dong Sicheng, and that was rather bothersome, but it didn’t make the deed impossible. After he took his picture, Ten realized that he was getting somewhat good at this. His body count had moved up to three and he wasn’t necessarily complaining, this was all for you. Even if Ten was rather out of commission for a while after, at least there was no immediate threat to you. He took this time to create his own makeshift darkroom to develop the photos in and _oh_ the glory. It was like he was in those scenes again. He, of course, kept these photos well hidden from the public, he’d surely be apprehended within _seconds_ if he let these see even the light of his apartment.

Three murders within two weeks? The entirety of the university, students and faculty alike, were afraid. No one wanted to show up to campus, and people were beginning to keep to themselves more so than before, theories started to fly about and fingers were being pointed to see who the serial killer was, but none of them were true. Ten would know, he’s the one who killed them. But when the detectives came to him, the top of his class, to aid in the investigation? How could he have said no? And now he was working shoulder to shoulder with who he should’ve recognized to be his greatest enemy, that _damn_ prodigy detective Liu Yangyang. Ten had almost lost sight of his mission while tiptoeing around the detective and playing a classic game of cat and mouse, _almost_.

Then it was Huang Guanheng, the infamous barista at the café that your small trio often frequented, who in an accident of a slip of tongue accidentally offended you. Although you both laughed it off, Ten felt his blood boil. How could anyone say that to you and hurt you so? But he was always a master of keeping things to himself, of keeping his emotions hidden, if anything he prided himself on it. But the man was easily taken care of, it wasn’t hard making his death look like a mere accident but, of course, the campus didn’t buy it. Ten was almost certain that this work of art might’ve been his best, it must’ve had something to do with the way the vibrant red dripped so perfectly down the cement stairs. 

Everyone was scrambling to find a way to link the murders, four murders within the span of now four weeks, it was no coincidence. Everyone wanted answers and everyone started coming up with their own, and so was Ten. He couldn’t allow any loose ends to tie him to these murders, and so far he’s been doing quite well, Liu Yangyang didn’t have a clue, always drawing connections but never making conclusions, he was easier to manipulate than Ten had imagined.

But he seemed to have neglected one thing during his pursuit of heroism.

_You_.

And he found this out when he went to pay you a visit one day and _Kun_ opened the door.

“Kun? What are you doing here?” Ten asks.

“I…” Kun’s voice was somewhat hoarse and he cleared his throat. “(Y/N) and I went to the get together last night, you know, the one with Taeyong and Johnny? You said you couldn’t make it because of—”

“Class, yeah. But that doesn’t answer my question,” Ten’s eyes drifted behind Kun to see the messy trail of discarded clothes leading to your room.

“(Y/N) and I just got… uh… _way_ too drunk last night, so we walked back here since it was the closest and I stayed over because it was so late,” Kun answers. He rubs his eyes and drags a tired hand across his face. “Did you need something?”

“Just wanted to say ‘hi’ to (Y/N),” Ten catches the marks on Kun’s neck right before he covered them with his hand. Ten's fists clenched and relaxed rapidly, but he kept them hidden from Kun.

“Oh, yeah, she’s still asleep, I can get her for you, though,” Kun offers, massaging the side of his neck gently.

“No, that’s fine. I’ll come back later,” Ten tried his best to keep his voice steady.

“Alright, I’ll tell her you dropped by,” Kun nods before closing the door. Ten stood still at the door, the gears in his mind working faster than ever before. How could he have overlooked the glaring variable? How could he have just _forgotten_ about an obstacle so great? Why was he mad? Was it because of his own stupidity? Or was it because he _knew_ that Kun got to see a side of you before he did? When did this happen anyway? Ten took a step back and started walking out of the apartment building, trying to put pieces together.

It must have started with Huang Xuxi.

You had mentioned that since he couldn’t have made it, you had asked Kun to help you instead. Did it start then? Or when he was taking care of Xiao Dejun, you had mentioned that you wanted him to come with you and Kun to study, but he had declined in order to kill him, what could have occurred while you two were alone in the library? No, it had to have been while he was chasing down Dong Sicheng, he had left you and Kun alone in the cinema so he could follow the clumsy bastard, how the hell did Ten overlook that? It couldn’t have been with Huang Guanheng, you weren’t with Kun that day, he was sick at home. Wait, no, you were with him. Ten remembered you saying that you were going to visit Kun to give him your notes for that day, _god_ , how could he have been so stupid? And now? Now that Ten _knows_ that something happened the night before between the two of you? Something that he wanted to take for himself was now in the possession of who he thought was not only his best friend but also someone out of the equation? He didn’t want to imagine it. He didn’t want to imagine the way Kun’s hands were on you, he didn’t want to imagine the scene that must have happened, he didn’t want to imagine Kun touching what was _his_. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Ten was already in his car when a horrifying thought struck him. You must have been so _scared_. That someone you had thought so fondly of was treating you in such a way, Ten would have been horrified, and he could only imagine what you were thinking in the heat of the moment.

Ten knew what he had to do. And he had to do it quickly.

He pulled his phone out, checking the lone notification on his lock screen. It was an email from an unknown source, and curiosity led him to open it. There was no subject and no body of the email, only an attachment. Ten opened it without hesitation and all it read was the simple phrase: _‘Do it.’_

Ten felt another laugh rise in his throat. Was this some sort of divine confirmation? His affirmation to kill his best friend?

He decided that it was. And he killed Qian Kun that night.

Over and over again, Ten couldn’t stop himself. He let out every bit of anger he had been holding inside of him out through every movement of the knife, with the sounds of bones crushing and muscles ripping guiding his movements. But even with that, he shouldn’t have been surprised that Qian Kun put up a fight, yet he was astonished by how devastatingly _persistent_ he was to stay alive. He wasn’t expecting Qian Kun to be so _difficult_ , but here Ten stood with shallow and open wounds all over his body. Ten couldn’t call this a _loss_ , however, for he still came out victorious. The monster was gone, deceased, and killed, it couldn’t hurt you anymore, and knowing this provided all the relief Ten needed in order to cancel out the pain. He felt bad, somewhat, not because he killed his best friend, but more so because he _didn’t_ feel bad about killing his best friend. Even now, while Ten stood over the dead body, he couldn’t help but grin. This one had to be his best masterpiece yet, and he was sure that the media would go ballistic at the artwork he had left behind this time. But when he pressed on the shutter, heard the _click_ , and reveled in the _flash_ of his now purposeful camera, that’s when he heard the sudden _clatter_ of something behind him. Ten turned around slowly, his hand resting on the handgun that, ironically, was gifted to him from Liu Yangyang, and aimed at the intruder behind him.

It was you.

But why were you here? In Qian Kun’s apartment?

Ten’s mind was moving a mile a minute. You must have been kidnapped, right? All the scenarios that displayed in his head, all the horrors of you being taken against your will, but then another sudden disturbance. The phone on the ground, the one that you dropped, a very familiar voice came from it.

_“(Y/N)? What did you say about Ten? Is he alright? (Y/N)! Answer me!”_ Liu Yangyang.

“You’re safe now,” Ten put the gun behind him and spoke quietly. But you were frozen in shock, he couldn’t read your expression at all, it was this mix of horror and sorrow and, dare he say, it was quite the look on you. And before he could say anything else, you scrambled to Kun, trying to find any signs of life in him. That’s when Ten heard the sirens. He looked down at you, then to your phone, and then to the wide-open door. You had called the police? But why? He was here to help you. And for _god’s_ sake why were you wasting your tears on Qian Kun? Ten put his hand on your shoulder. “Let’s go now.”

“What?” You rested your hands on the sides of Qian Kun’s face and turned your head to face Ten with a look he’d thought that he would never see on you. You were very clearly afraid. “Ten… why did you do this?! He was our best friend!”

“That _thing_ down there was never anything to me,” Ten corrects. He steps over the body without care and grabs your arm, yanking you back. But, in some horrid twist of fate, Qian Kun turned over and grabbed Ten’s ankle, hauling him back and away from you.

“Get out of here!” Qian Kun’s voice was distorted with some kind of primal desire to live, it was _disgusting_. Ten pulled his gun out again and silenced Qian Kun for good, and when he turned back around to find you, you were long gone yourself. Ten pried Qian Kun’s hand off of his ankle and walked out of the apartment, being sure not to leave any trace of himself behind, he ducked away from the cops and made a quick escape. Don’t worry, he’ll find you, one way or another, you’ll be where you belonged.

That day came maybe a few weeks later.

Ten sat down on the recliner, making himself at home while he waited patiently. He crossed his legs and bounced them to the rhythm of whatever classical piece was playing on the record player, and he tapped the gun against his thigh slowly, staring at the front door in unperturbed silence. He laid his head back for a moment, thinking about what he was going to say when he saw you again, surely you would be very happy, right? He’d save you from yet another villain, and you’d be more than grateful. Soon, the door opened, and Ten straightened.

“Did you leave the record player on?” Your voice graced his ears, he felt like it had been years since he heard it.

“Huh? No,” that voice was familiar, who did it belong to?

“Oh, I’ll just turn it off then,” you called back and walked into the small home. Then, Ten turned the lamp next to him on.

“Don’t scream,” he holds a finger to his lips and you clamped your hands over your mouth. He looks at the door. “Lock it.” You nodded your head slowly and shut the door, but Ten didn’t relax until he heard the pleasurable _click_ of the lock, muffled shouts of confusion coming from outside.

“Good girl,” he smiles, standing up and removing the needle from the record, ceasing the music entirely. He turned to you to ask how you were doing, but you were preoccupied with the pictures he had hung on the wall.

“You… you killed all of them…” your eyes were wide open with shock. You looked at him. “Why?”

“They hurt you,” Ten answers. He walks next to you and takes Qian Kun’s photo off of the wall. “But this one was the worst. Wouldn’t you agree?” He hands it to you and walks off to look out the window. He pulled the curtain back slowly and looked at who was on the driveway of the house. _Liu Yangyang_. Of course it would’ve been that goddamn detective.

“Will you stop… if I go with you?” You asked him. Ten looked over his shoulder and back at the detective.

“Maybe. Depends if I’m feeling nice.”

“Why are you doing this?” You asked again.

“Because without me…” Ten noticed Liu Yangyang staring at him and he took a step back from the window. “Where would you be?” He answers your question with one of his own.

“I don’t…” you stumbled over your words, and you took a deep breath in to calm yourself. “You’re not a bad person… Ten. But… I think you need some help,” you took careful steps towards him. One of the things he always found so endearing in you was the way you _lied_ , the way your eyes would make quick glances towards the side, the way you'd twiddle your fingers together, it was one of the reasons why he was so helplessly infatuated with you.

“Help?”

“I can do that, I can help you… we’ll leave through the back door, okay?” You tried to usher him to the backyard.

“You’d… you’d do that for me?” He was slightly confused, after everything that he’s done, you’d help him? To be fair, he did come here to whisk you away and save you from whatever hell Detective Liu put you through, but he was expecting some sort of retaliation, but here you were, rolling over for him. His hopeful expression dropped. “This is exactly why you need me, do you know that?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re so _willing_ to help people, to give them a second chance, but so much to the point where it ruins you. If I didn’t kill those people, they would’ve taken advantage of you, did you know that?”

“I…”

“Think about it, (Y/N). Am I wrong?” Ten turns on the stove and places a kettle on top of it then leans against the counter. He was right, and he knew that you knew it too. “Huang Xuxi, he was quite the character, wasn’t he? So sweet on the outside, but goodness, the way you’d shake if you knew what he was really like,” Ten chuckles.

“The allegations, right?”

“Precisely.”

“I only found out about them after he was killed,” you mumbled.

“Oh, Xiao Dejun was a personal favorite of mine, getting into University with connections only, I wonder how he lasted so long here,” Ten pulls out a mug from the cupboard and prepares coffee for himself. “Not to mention Dong Sicheng, who knew one could have so many DUIs? Very interesting, indeed. Oh, and Huang Guanheng, what a character, he was. Actually, I couldn’t find anything bad on him, but it was bound to happen, they always do,” Ten stiffens slightly when he heard someone ram into the front door.

“How bothersome,” Ten frowns. “Now, what was this about leaving through the backyard?”

“Um… It would be rather difficult, but it’s not impossible,” you backed up to the wall and pressed up against it.

“How rude of me, did you want some coffee as well?”

“Oh, no thank you,” you shook your head slightly, but you flinched when you heard a loud bang from outside. Ten moved over to you quickly and pushed you behind him, drawing his gun towards the door. As soon as the Prodigy Detective burst into the room, Ten shot without hesitation.

“(Y/N), don’t!” Liu Yangyang’s expression fell into shock. When had you moved away from behind him? Why were you standing in front of him now? Ten looked down at the splash of crimson that blossomed through your blouse before you finally scrambled away from him. Liu Yangyang fired another shot, the bullet landing somewhere on Ten’s chest, but that was the least of his worries. Instead, all he could see was the trail of red that followed you to your final resting place. It was a horrible fate, truly, Ten had decided on. And he shot and killed the Detective without another thought about him, but _good god_ , the work of art left behind, Ten couldn’t shake it out of his thoughts. Of course, with someone as beautiful as you, you would leave something equally as awe-striking behind, wouldn’t you? Ten picked up your body slowly, placing it on the couch he was just sitting at, and he fell back down onto the recliner, drinking the coffee slowly. He had heard the sirens from a mile away, it was only natural that Liu Yangyang called them after noticing that the mysterious _Lucifer_ was in his home.

What now?

Ten dropped the mug on the floor, hearing the ceramic object shatter across the hardwood, and he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and digging his fingers into his scalp. _What had he done?_ You were dead, and he did that. He was supposed to be the person to protect you, right? He had done the exact opposite of what he had sworn to do. He looked over to you, you who looked so peaceful on that couch, it looked like he had lifted a burden off of you. Then, a thought struck him. No, he didn’t do the worst possible thing to you, no he didn’t do that, he could never. He had liberated you, this was the only way to guarantee your protection, he realized.

“Hands up! You have a right to remain silent!” Officer Nakamoto barged into the home, his gun pulled out and aimed right at Ten.

“Well,” Ten looked over at Liu Yangyang. “It would seem that you have achieved your checkmate in the end, Detective.”

~

When you woke up again, you found yourself a lot… higher than usual, literally. You held your head up and noticed that you were being carried on someone’s back. You tried to speak, but doing so much as blinking caused an unbearable pain to shoot up in your head. There was an insufferable amount of overlapping memories in your head, memories of this timeline, memories of another, and some that didn’t fit in with either of those two. It felt like three timelines converging on each other, all fighting to take their place in your mind as the absolute truth, and it drove you mad.

“(Y/N)? Are you awake?” Kun’s voice pulled you back to safety.

“Kun?”

“Oh, good morning,” he teases.

“Where are we going?”

“Med bay. Are you alright? You had me scared there, I thought you inhaled too much smoke,” with every word he said, the skull-rattling pain in your head went away, you almost wanted to keep asking him questions to keep your brain from exploding, but you couldn’t admit that to him. You looked around and notices that you were far from the fire.

“Are we still in the West Wing?”

“Yeah, I haven’t seen any signs of Ten, though, so I think we’re okay,” Kun answers. He crouches down just enough for you to hop off, and you did so gently. “How’s your head?”

“Much better, I’m sorry for worrying you,” you look over your shoulder while Kun opens the door. You both entered the med bay silently and he started looking through his cabinet.

“Here, migraine medication,” he tosses it to you and you catch it easily. “Just in case, you know?”

“Just in case,” you opened it and swallowed one. You looked down at your arm, there were still faint traces from when Ten tried to break it. “Why would he do that…?”

“Well, you heard him, he was desperate,” Kun sighs. “I’ll be honest, so was I. And when Ten came up to me months ago asking me to figure out what Xiaojun was planning, I think that’s when I started to get more scared for him. There’s something wrong with him now, something must have happened while he was trying to get in here, because, I’m sure you’ll agree, there’s something _different_ about him,” Kun sits on one of the nurse’s desks.

“I do agree, there’s something off about him, and I can’t exactly explain what,” you hummed.

Ten was… no, _is_ a serial killer. There was no denying that. You remembered everything from that timeline now, and you remembered everything that he’s done, he’s irredeemable. There’s nothing he could do to prove himself worthy in your eyes, and you felt almost disgusted with yourself that up until a few moments ago you considered him your best friend. Part of you wanted to forgive him, wanted to see the best in him, you wanted to believe that the Ten you knew growing up was the real Ten, not the monster you remembered from the so-called sixth timeline. And maybe the Ten you knew was the genuine one, maybe the one from the past timeline was just one that was misguided, one that your past self should’ve paid more attention to, one that you shouldn’t have forsaken. Maybe that’s what the past version of you was trying to do, trying to guide him back to the right path.

Or maybe she wasn’t.

After all, you didn’t remember all the details of either of the timelines that had decided to make residence in your head. You didn’t even know which ones belonged to which.

But you did remember Kun, from both timelines. The sudden rush of memories caused your face to flush, and you covered your face quickly, under the guise of another migraine hitting you, and you tried to play it down.

“Is there something wrong?” He asks.

“No, nothing that should concern you,” you mumbled. “You mentioned that Ten put you up to Xiaojun’s plan, right?”

“He did.”

“Why’d you do it? Why’d you say yes?”

“He promised me that he’d let me go back to my timeline,” Kun shrugs. “Back to before my life went to shit. Well… that turned out to be a lie.”

“Maybe there’s still a chance,” you took out the silver key and Kun moves off of the desk.

“Where did you get this?”

“Ten gave it to me while we were in the Boiler Room.”

“Xuxi mentioned that you found the emergency exit while I was trying to get him out… I thought you had escaped to safety,” you handed Kun the key and he observed it. “I’ll be honest, I’m rather upset that you’re standing in front of me right now.”

“Sorry,” you read the label on the pill bottle. “I just… I originally didn’t want to leave anyone behind, but I think if I tried to save everyone now, I’d end up dead.”

“That is a plausible theory,” Kun chuckles. You both stood awkwardly in the med bay, wondering what the next course of action should be. Whereas Kun was trying to find out how to escape, you were stuck between a raging internal conflict of truth. The two versions of Ten clashed within your memories, contradictory actions appeared in both, things you couldn’t imagine the other doing have occurred and you didn’t know what to believe in. You wanted to fulfill the task the previous you had left behind, to guide Ten back to his original self, but was that possible with what he has done? “(Y/N),” Kun places the key in his pocket.

“Yeah?”

“Let’s escape here together,” he offers. You crossed your arms and lowered your head in thought. It was tempting, at first. You wanted to know which Kun was in front of you, which memories did he share with you? Regardless of timeline, you only had good recollections of him. Kun had always been someone rather interesting, you would think. You never knew his true intentions, and you never knew what was going on in that calculating head of his. He must know more than he lets on, he must know more than he’s willing to tell you, and for all you knew you’d never know. You were almost certain now, that first dream you had, the voices sound exactly the same. Kun was the one, in the end, to push you to enter the Sector, but why? Was he going with Xiaojun’s or Ten’s plan? Who is he really allied with, and how did that affect you? Questions continued to layer themselves on top of each other relentlessly, and the longer you thought about them the more confusing they became. Come to think about it, Kun was the _first_ person you saw in the Sector too, he must have known that you were going to come, and he must have been determined to be the first one you encountered, and since then he’s been nothing but helpful. There isn’t a memory in your head where Kun tried to or caused you to be put into immediate danger. Which, again, begs the question:

_How much does Qian Kun know?_

“I think that’s a good idea,” you finally agreed with him. Regardless of your thoughts, it’s better to go as a group than alone, you didn’t know what you’d do if you ran into, say, Yangyang on your own, at least Kun would know how to deescalate the situation.

After some time, you were convinced that you were lost. It felt like you and Kun have been walking around in circles for hours on end, although you knew that couldn’t be true, you’d both have burned to ash if so. Not to mention the smoke, when you had both initially entered the East Wing you thought that it wouldn’t have been horrible but you were _so very_ wrong. Your vision had already begun to teeter-totter, but you had to persevere. You were shocked that you didn’t run into the other inmates during this time, be it because they were dead or purposely keeping their distance.

“Are you sure we’re going the right way?” Kun finally asks you.

“Yeah… just straight shot of the Boiler Room and a left and two rights,” you had been reciting the pattern in your head subconsciously since you found the emergency exit, not wanting to forget it when time came crucial. You didn’t know why it seemed further than you remembered, maybe it was because you were in a panic when you first found it, things seemed to be moving much faster. “Wait! It’s over there!” You pointed to the steel door just down the hall, and you and Kun made a break for it. You opened the door and you both filed in, shutting the door and keeping the flames away. You both stared at the door, it was the only thing keeping you away from death now.

“It’s always us three in the end, isn’t it?” A voice behind you sighs. You froze in place, and Kun took the liberty of answering.

“How did you know we’d come here?”

“Well, that’s a _dumb_ question,” Ten sneers. “(Y/N) had the key, she didn’t want to die, and you just happened to be with her. It doesn’t get any more elementary than that,” Ten pushes himself off of the wall and walks into the light. His Warden’s uniform was dyed red, and his hands and arms were skinned in some areas, you couldn’t tell if it was his blood or anyone else’s, and you didn’t want to know.

“Well, what are you going to do now?” Kun asks.

“The exit is designed to work only when people of the same timeline or people who have memories of the same timeline are together, it, just like everything in this Sector, was designed specifically for security purposes. But if there happens to be an _extra_ , the exit, theoretically, won’t work,” Ten walks over to the metal box and holds up another silver key, identical to the one in Kun’s hand, and he pushes it into the keyhole. “I wonder, if I turned this right now, what would happen? (Y/N) now has memories of two timelines. Will she go to TL1 or TL6? Or will she go back to TL8? Or will nothing happen at all?” Ten hums.

“There were two keys…” You were still trying to catch your breath.

“Not really, this one just happened to be from TL8, I took it from your father,” Ten taps his fingers against the box and turns to lean against it, facing the both of you, his hand hidden behind him. His expression was unreadable. “Always us three in the end…” he shakes his head.

“Ten, let’s talk about this,” Kun steps up.

“How many more times will I have to kill you, Qian Kun?” Ten’s frown deepens, he pulls a gun out. “Does this look familiar?” He asks. A small tag dangled down from the handle, ‘TL1’ printed in bold on it. He opens the barrel and takes out five of the six bullets inside of it. He spins it carelessly, listening to it lock in place.

“Let’s play one last game, shall we? Enough of the mind fuckery, let’s finish this, Kun, with one last game,” Ten spins the gun around his palm slowly. “As much as I’d love to pick apart your brain, I must admit that I’m rather impatient. Who would have known that there was a _third_ party in Dejun and I’s game of tug-of-war? And who knows, maybe the other four had motivations of their own? I should’ve asked first but it wasn’t really a priority of mine until I sat here and thought of it.”

“It's always games with you, Ten. Alright then, let's finish this.” Kun glanced over to you, and you took a step back. You knew damn well what was about to happen, and you didn’t have the courage to speak up about it, you didn’t have the willpower in you to fight them, and even if you did you were sure that you’d be silenced quickly. Ten pointed the gun at himself first. The room was tense around you, and you were certain that you’d hear a pin drop if there were one. 

“Actually, let’s raise the stakes, have some fun,” Ten walks up to you and places the gun in your hands. “Why don’t you do it, (Y/N)? Come on, one last game as best friends,” he insists. The steel was cold and heavy, and your hands shook intensely.

“Ten, don’t do that to her. She has nothing to do with this,” Kun walks over and tries to take the gun, but Ten kept him away.

“Why don’t we start? Come on, (Y/N), it’s not hard. Pull the trigger,” Ten goes back to the metal box.

“No, no, I couldn’t—”

“Pull the fucking trigger before I take that gun back and fire at you until the bullet comes out,” Ten growls.

_Click_.

“Ah, how disappointing,” Ten looked at the pistol aimed at Kun. “Well then, continue,” he says. Tears brimmed your eyes, he was really making you do this. Your breath was shaky while you turned it towards Ten.

_Click._

That made two blanks in a row, four left, a 25% chance.

“Ten, let’s be civil about this,” Kun didn’t spare you a glance while you turned the barrel towards him.

“What do you mean? This is as civil as it gets. Either die by a gunshot or be burned alive, what’s your call?”

_Click._

You turned the gun towards Ten. You wondered if there would be a way you could grab the key from either of them and use it yourself.

_Click._

“No dice,” Kun clenches his jaw. It was down to 50/50 now while you held it towards Kun.

“Just turn the key, Ten,” you plead. “The worst that could happen is nothing,” you reasoned. Ten tapped his finger against the silver key. He could’ve left hours ago, but he stayed just to taunt the both of you.

“No, I don’t want to,” Ten says in a mocking voice, all the while he kept his hand on the key, ready to turn it at a moment’s notice. Your arms slowly lowered with both the weight of a human life and the pure fear that coursed through you, but a quick glare from Ten made them move back up.

“I’m so sorry,” your voice trembled.

_Bang._

Ten turned the key quickly, and before Kun could even reach the floor, the room was filled with a blinding light.

~

Ten heard your abrupt shriek from across the house, every sense in him heightened, and his hand immediately moved to the spade next to him. What could have happened at this time of night? He was sure that he had left you secure and safe before he left the bedroom. He was about to run over to you from his studio until he heard your quick steps just outside the door. Then, two soft knocks. Who would he be to leave you out?

“Come in.”

“Ten?” He could tell you had been crying. He gently gestured to you to come over, and you walked over slowly.

Ten took a step back from the large canvas he had been working on and hummed, art had always been more of a hobby of his and, now that he was working full time on the force, he rarely found enough time to express his feelings on blank paper. He picked up his mug of coffee that had been resting forgotten on the warmer and took a small sip from it, one he took generously while studying the artwork.

When the light had subsided, Ten found himself sitting in his car in front of your apartment building, one he hadn’t seen in a long time. Now, he remembered everything that had happened, he knew who was in there, he knew what was going on, and, of course, in comes the email. A tired smile crept onto his face as he stared at the unopened notification, before finally deleting it. Clever boy, that Yangyang, much smarter than he ever let on, and Ten could only wonder why he had agreed to help him despite his questionable motives. But, truly, sending out messages from TL9 to the other timelines in order to stop Xiaojun? To stop Xiaojun’s master plan? Ten was impressed, Yangyang’s hatred for the other inmate was truly perpetual.

There was no point in being transferred to the Sector at this time, he’d rather avoid it, actually. He tapped his hands on the steering wheel, wondering about his next course of action, he _could_ kill Kun. He had already killed dozens by now, what’s another death? He looked up at your apartment briefly before turning back to the road and pulling away from the curb.

Don’t get him wrong.

He _did_ kill Kun in the end.

Only this time, he made sure you weren’t there to see it and, lo and behold, you willingly came into his arms, after all, what else were you supposed to do? But that was it for him, he stopped there. He couldn’t risk putting himself in another situation where he’d be caught and, what a surprise, he didn’t even have to kill the Prodigal Detective in the end, which was much more favorable for him. Less work on his part. The case ended up going cold, with a lack of evidence and a sudden cease in activity, _Lucifer’s_ reign of terror came to an end with simple, but large, reimbursements to the families affected. All was well, you had both graduated, moved in together, and started a life together. To put things rather plainly, he had you in the end, and he couldn’t ask for more.

“What do you think?” He asks you.

“It looks familiar,” you said to him, he looked down at you with a slightly concerned face. He made sure that you wouldn’t remember anything about the Sector, went as far as to take extra precautions so that you wouldn’t recall a _single_ thing, maybe Kun wasn’t so useless in the end? If only the Kun in TL6 was as smart as the one in TL9, Ten would’ve been much more amused when he killed him, but oh well, it is what it is. Regardless, to hear you even allude to knowing what it was that Ten had mapped on the canvas put him on edge. “Don’t laugh.”

“I won’t.”

“I’ve been seeing this in a string of dreams of mine…” you admitted. “Except… it was always on fire, and there were people I didn’t recognize there either… And I don’t know why but… you always acted so strange in them. As if you were an entirely different person. There have even been some nightmares where I was _afraid_ of you… Not that I'd ever be afraid of you in real life, that's preposterous,” you continued. A scowl appeared on Ten’s face briefly, but it was gone as soon as you turned to him.

“Dreams… are just that,” Ten reiterates. Dreams, huh? Was that your Xiaojun’s way of cursing him? Ten fought the twisted smile on his face, not wanting to alarm you in any way. It was never a dull moment working against that one. He looks at the cup of coffee in his hands and splashes it throughout the canvas, hearing the sounds of boiling coffee and wet acrylic mix together. A small gasp made its way out of your lips and Ten chuckles. “Did I scare you?”

“Just a little,” you began to laugh yourself. “But you spent so much time on that one, didn’t you? Why do that?”

“No clue, I don’t know what came over me,” Ten sighs, watching the dark painting ruin itself. Ten stared at the red paint on his hands and forearms, lingering on them longer than he should have. Was he running out of inspiration? Did he need to find some sort of release again? He looked over to you, you who was still staring at the painting, trying to find out why it seemed so familiar to you, and he was pulled back from his thoughts. No, he shouldn’t go back to killing people, it would just put you at risk, wouldn’t it?

“Anyway…” you turned from the painting and looked over to the hallway. “I can’t really go back to sleep anymore… and you’ve been here for quite some time anyway, right? Why don’t we go do something else?”

“I’d like that very much, actually,” Ten stretches his arms over his head. “Where to?”

“It’s still dark out, so maybe we can just watch a movie?”

“Sounds perfect.”

“Great! I’ll go put something on then!” You bounced out of the studio first, and once he was certain you were gone, he walked over to one of the drawers at the side of the studio and pulled it open. He shuffled through the mess of brushes and sponges inside and pulled out the notorious silver key. He held it up to the setting sun right outside the windows, watching the way the orange light reflected on the key.

“Causing trouble, hm?” He speaks to himself. “I should dispose of you for good, I don’t know why I kept you for this long,” he continues, flicking his finger against the key softly. A small compartment opened up and a chip fell out into his palm.

“You’ve always kept me on my toes, Xiao Dejun,” Ten smirks. He drops the chip and crushes it under his shoe. He hides the key in his hand while he walks out to you.

“Going out?”

“Just have to throw something away outside.”

“Oh, okay. Be careful,” he shut the door behind him.

Once he was gone, you walked back into the studio, staring at the large and, for the most part, _ruined_ canvas. Prior, it was just a painting of a large building in the shape of the letter ‘V,’ with various communication towers and electrical wirings lining it. The dark and muted colors that Ten had used invoked strange feelings of discomfort in you alongside unspeakable amounts of fear, you were certain that the image was cursed, no, it had to be. You noticed that even Ten would feel uneasy around it, you didn’t even know why he painted it in the first place. You stared at it a bit longer, it really was familiar to you, and you wondered why. You tried to think back to those nightmares, those horrible visions of seeing people burning to death, but above those screams was your father’s voice. And he only ever said one thing:

**_‘You can only save one.’_ **


	17. Ipomoea [Yangyang Ending]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word Count: 10.2K
> 
> Notes: Ahhh it’s the last one!!!! We finally made it after so long, good lord. I can’t believe it’s officially the end, I told myself I wouldn’t get emotional, but y’all know how much time I put into Zemblanity, so now that we’re at the end I feel a little bit sad. I hope my future series live up to the attention Zemblanity got, hehe, it was such a fun ride to talk with all of you about Zemblanity and, maybe soon, there will be a special event for Zemblanity, haha, but we’ll see, it all depends on scheduling, but without further ado, here’s the final ending for Zemblanity.
> 
> Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in or condone these actions. I would never wish any of these actions to occur to the Idol(s) mentioned in the writings of these stories, nor do I wish any harm on them.
> 
> TW: Murder, Implications of Torture, Car Accident, DUI, Unsettling Themes, Language, Fire, Guns, Gun Violence,

_Morning Glories._

According to you, they are of the class Ipomea, with low toxicity and tendency to become weedy, they are typically native to the high central America. There was a time Yangyang called them beautiful, and they really were, actually, he’d marvel every time he saw them and equally find himself amazed when you would tell him about them, but now whenever he saw one he wanted nothing more than to rip their petals off and beat them into the ground. Every time he’d feel it rising up in his throat he’d feel like screaming at the highest decibel with little to no remorse for any unfortunate enough to be around him, he despised them to that much of a horrible extent. He tried it once, only to cough out more, and he quickly deemed that an unnecessary crusade to vent his anger. The vibrant spectrum of blues and violets alike would litter his vision, cursing him to the end of his days and, surely, they will be the last thing he’ll ever see if he continues at this rate.

A flower that symbolizes _mortality_ , how fitting. He’ll die as he lived, with feelings locked in his chest.

He looked into the mirror, how had he let it get this bad? His cheeks were slightly sunken in, and the bags under his eyes were anything but flattering, he couldn’t tell if it was the lighting or not but it looked like he was even losing pigment in his skin. He looked dead almost, a walking corpse if anything, and he was surprised that no one brought it up to him. How much longer will he let this go on?

He tied up the trash bag, being sure to conceal every shade of indigo he could, right when he heard someone knock at his door. Hitting his chest a couple of times and making sure he looked at least decent, he opened his door cautiously, and, he wouldn’t say he was surprised at this fact, there you were.

“You look horrible,” Yangyang frowns. You put on a weak smile and shook your head.

“Just tired is all,” you responded. Yangyang stepped aside and let you in, of course, you were always welcome in his apartment, you even had your own key, he would never really understand why you put the effort in to be polite. You moved over to his old couch and sprawled yourself across it like it was routine, and the dreaded sigh followed.

“Are you alright?” He asks you, it was obvious you weren’t, he just figured it would be better if he had asked first.

“Honestly? I just want to cry my eyes out until I’m okay,” you laughed sadly, covering your eyes with your arm.

“Was it that bad this time?”

“I didn’t even do anything, I was just _sitting_ there,” you mumbled. You pushed yourself up slightly, resting your head on the armrest of the couch now, and watched him move about the kitchen. Yangyang shoved the trash bag under the sink and nodded. “Am I a good girlfriend?”

“What are you saying? Of course you are,” Yangyang almost sounded offended. Oh, if only you knew. The dreams he had where you’d come running to him, the dreams he’s had with you in his arms, and especially the ones he’s had where you would tell him that he was the one you loved. Whenever he had those dreams they were always a moment of bliss, one that he could never willingly pull himself out of. If he can’t have you in real life then surely he could in his fantasies, right? The only thing that would pull him out of it was when he’d feel those damn _flowers_ making their way up his throat, then he’d be forcibly pulled back into reality. It felt horrible, actually, to keep these feelings locked up. “The fact that you’re worrying about it right now is proof enough,” he continues, shaking any and all thoughts of you out of his head. He’s almost certain that Dejun wasn’t paying you any mind right now, actually. At first, Yangyang chalked it up to him being jealous, but even when he tried to see it from an unbiased perspective, Dejun really was just a _shitty_ boyfriend. He’d get pissed when you’d go out with your friends without telling him and even more pissed when you questioned why he did the same. Not to mention he had heard about your now frequent arguments with each other, often leaving you behind to pick up the pieces and loathe for your failing relationship.

But what really irked Yangyang is the fact that you still _insisted_ on staying with him, your _boyfriend_. Haven’t you suffered enough from his games? Sometimes, Yangyang wished he could pull you aside and show you from another perspective of how toxic the whole thing was, but he didn’t want to overstep boundaries.

After all, it was his fault that you met Dejun in the first place, he shouldn’t be complaining. Then again, he never expected for it to get this bad. Plus, Dejun used to be a good person, great even. Yangyang used to marvel at the way you and Dejun would be so sweet together, until one day it just… _stopped_. And he couldn’t help but feel somewhat responsible for your now dampening mood, and he wanted nothing more than to fix it.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right about that,” you sighed.

“He’s not going to be mad that you’re here, right?”

“He can’t get mad about something he doesn’t know about,” you said quietly.

“(Y/N)…” Yangyang left a cup of water on the coffee table for you. “What was it about? Do you want to talk about it?” You looked at him with wide eyes, and he could tell that you were debating on whether or not you’d share with him.

“No, not really…” you turned away from him again. That was new, usually you’d tell him. He couldn’t help but wonder if it was about him. He and Dejun were never really that close anyway. “It’s not even that important anyway… I don’t know why either of us wasted the energy arguing about it.”

“I don’t know why you waste the energy being with him,” Yangyang huffs. Again, you turned to him, but while he was expecting a shocked expression, he only got a languished one.

You agreed with him, he knew. He’s known you for years now.

“I don’t either,” another pathetic laugh from you. “But I’m too afraid to stop.”

“Why?”

“Because… I really do love him,” your voice was strained, and Yangyang swallowed down the rising petals.

You always surprised him, and he never knew what to expect from you. You were a dynamic variable in his life, a thrill that kept him around. Maybe that was an overstatement, actually. You both had grown up in the same rundown apartment complex, you both went to school together, you both did so much with each other throughout the years that Yangyang couldn’t even recall all of the crazy shit you’ve both done. But what always charmed him was the way that you wouldn’t bend down to anyone, you’d fight back, you’d make it clear where everyone stood with you. It was amazing to him, almost. It was amazing to the boy who couldn’t even speak up to someone a month older than him, and there you were yelling at the old man who deflated his basketball since he was sick of hearing the seven-year-old boy playing with it.

You were his inspiration, his _idol_.

Yangyang leaned against the wall, watching you doze off quietly, your puffy eyes and your tear-stained cheeks shattered his heart into dozens of pieces, and he had to stop himself multiple times from reaching out to you and holding you close to his chest. He wasn’t worthy of you, that much he knew, but he also knew that Dejun didn’t deserve you _at all_. Yangyang hung around a bit longer, wondering if he could ever talk you out of that relationship, but he knew better than to overstep in your life, you were both adults now, making your own decisions and whatnot, and he knew that you appreciated a friend that would stay by your side more so than one that would talk you out of things, but still, it wouldn’t stop him from worrying.

Would you believe him if he told you the truth?

Ever since the two of you got evicted from your apartment you both had to go your separate ways, Yangyang was able to get his old apartment for half off since the landlady was close with his parents, and you moved in with your boyfriend. Obviously, he hasn’t found a good time to be with you. He was kind of disappointed, actually, you were supposed to move back into the old apartment complex with him, so you could imagine his surprise when you told him that you were going to move in with your boyfriend of, at the time, only three months instead.

If only you had a clue towards how much he loved you, that would be the end of him. It would make or break this wonderful relationship that was ten years running, and he’d rather murder someone than let it go down in the drain.

“You know, (Y/N),” Yangyang stood up straight, grabbing the blanket from the chair off to the side and walked up to you, casting the blanket over you and tucking you in gently. “You’re hurting yourself more, staying in together and calling it ‘love.’ It’s not good for either of you… you should really take a step back and think about it, (Y/N),” he was more of talking to himself, you had fallen asleep a while ago now, but Yangyang secretly hoped that you were listening. Another tired sigh came from him and he reached to tuck a few stray hairs out of your face, but as soon as his hand brushed your cheek, there was that sudden feeling of soft petals making their way up his throat and he rushed away from you, grabbing the trashcan and running outside. He had to have coughed up at least twenty morning glories before he was finally able to catch his breath again. He slumped against the door, looking out into the busy nightlife and smiled.

What a tragedy his life was… His father died in a car crash, his mother died from this very same disease he had, and he was essentially five lifetimes in debt. Then there was the case of you, your wonderfully angelic self just asleep a door away, that had to be the most tragic part of all.

“If I’m doing this for no reason and I’m going to die for something stupid, give me some form of divine intervention,” he shook his head and looked up to the sky. Just then, a gust of wind hit, and a letter landed in front of the young boy. His eyes grew wide and he picked it up, standing up quickly and looking around him.

He didn’t expect for that to work.

He turned the letter around, there was no return address nor was there anything else. He opened it, if this was his divine intervention then so be it and if it wasn’t then where’s the harm? He pulled out the folded paper inside and stared at it for a few more seconds before finally unfolding it and reading the message inside.

It was short, only a sentence really, and although its meaning was, at the very least, confusing, it still held with it a heavy message.

_If you don’t do anything, you’ll die tomorrow._

“Huh… that was oddly,” he fought back a cough, “specific…” He turned the letter over, it was written on the back of a flyer for a private practice for a doctor that specialized in the ever so rare Hanahaki Disease. Well, this is the divine intervention he asked for, right? He should give this Dr. Li Yongqin a call and maybe get a few things sorted out. He ruffled the back of his hair tiredly, shoved the flyer in his pocket, and grabbed the trash bag, hurling it down the garbage disposal before walking back into his apartment. He stared at your quiet figure, then looked back down at the flyer. There was the risk of him forgetting you entirely, losing any and all forms of feelings towards you. He didn’t want to risk that. He’d rather die as your best friend than live as your stranger.

Your phone rang on the coffee table, reminding Yangyang of the reality he has to deal with, and he glanced over at it. The phone rang a soft tune with Dejun’s name across it, and he had to fight the urge to hurl your phone out the window. He silenced the call when he saw you shift. 

He really did love you so much, didn’t he? Too much.

~

You stepped out of the door and landed in the Interrogation Room.

It was eerie in here, with no signs of life and white static on every screen of the room. If anything, it looked like the whole place was hit by an earthquake, metal sheets that were once bolted to the walls had been ripped off, metal pipes lay along the floor and sticking out from the wall, not to mention the electrical wires that would spark every so now and then. You felt like something was going to jump out of you, wrap its hands around your neck and strangle you until you turned blue, and maybe even drag you off somewhere to hide the evidence. Aside from that lingering and reasonably outrageous fear, you didn’t feel any different, actually. You had expected to have some sort of huge revelation that would lead to a eureka moment, but no. Still the same old (Y/N), still regretting all of her life choices.

Many things seemed to revolve around this room, you realized. So many things have been revealed to you here, and no doubt this room would continue to serve its purpose, and you wondered what exactly it would do for you next.

There was a loud crash from outside, causing the floor to shift for a brief second, and you stumbled back, grabbing onto the table before you could fall.

“Ah!” That wasn’t your voice. You looked at the table and felt your breath catch in your throat. You bent down slowly and looked underneath it. Yangyang sat beneath the table, his hands over his head and his face buried in his knees.

“Yangyang?” Your voice was soft while you reached out to him. You placed your hand on his head gently, but he didn’t move. You would never say it out loud, but he resembled that of a small child at this moment. He was so clearly shaken, that you couldn’t help but feel a small bit of sympathy for him, and truly if your first encounter with him didn’t involve him tying you to a bed you’d probably sympathize more with him. He was somewhat of a wild card though, despite his shortcomings, in the end it was him who exposed Xiaojun about the card, and he has shown an interest in… _not_ killing you. You’ve said it before, but maybe now’s the time to rely on him more. “Are you okay? Come on, let’s get out of here,” you tried to urge him. Yangyang wasn’t your favorite, let’s be honest, but you didn’t want to leave him behind either. He shook his head under your hand slowly.

“I don’t want to go back out there…” he mumbled. “And if you knew what’s good for you, you’d stay here too… come on, we’ll die together, I’d rather do that than get killed by someone,” he cries.

“Killed? What do you mean? What happened while I was gone?” You asked him, glancing over at the door and making sure no one was trying to come in.

“I don’t know! I was looking for you when I found Xuxi passed out on the floor, he had so many stab wounds… that doesn’t happen on accident, (Y/N), it’s so scary! Just stay here with me, okay?” He reaches up and grasps onto your wrist. “Just stay here… please…” his voice was shaking, and you could tell he was terrified to the core.

“Yangyang,” you frowned. “Come on, we have to go. If we stay here, whoever killed Xuxi will find us soon enough,” you coaxed him out from under the table, but he stayed put, and his hold around your wrist only got tighter.

“Stay…”

“We can’t—” now he tried to pull you towards him, but you fought back. “Yangyang! You’re hurting me!” And at that he let go, retracting his hand quickly with his expression filled with fear. You could only describe it as someone who had just committed a grave sin beyond redemption, someone who plead guilty, or someone who had just condemned themselves. You thought it was an overreaction, but then again, this is Yangyang you were talking to.

“I… I’m sorry…” he mumbled before he placed his hands on his head again. You could only chalk up his behavior to him finally learning that you had your own boundaries. “It’s so scary out there, someone might even kill you if you aren’t careful, (Y/N).” In his tone was something knowing, he knew something that he wasn’t telling you. You looked to the door, was there something there that he didn’t want you to know about? But why wouldn’t he tell you about it? Unless it was something so horribly terrifying that he decided to spare you the nightmares and just implore you to stay with him instead. You took out the silver key in your pocket and showed it to him.

“What’s that?” He asks you.

“Our ticket out of this Sector.”

“I don’t want it.”

“What do you mean you don’t want it?! We’re going!”

“No!”

“Why not?!” You were starting to get impatient, you had no clue why he was acting so childish now of all times. Yangyang didn’t answer, he just clutched onto his head tighter, as if trying to cancel out your voice and his surroundings entirely. Your eye twitched in slight annoyance, and you shook your head. You knew better than to try to convince the boy to go with you, especially in this state. Yangyang reminded you of someone who, once he sets his mind to it, will stick with it stubbornly. You placed your hands on top of his softly, and you felt him loosen up. “Look, I’m going to go to that emergency exit, whether you like it or not. I don’t… I _can’t_ die in here, Yangyang. Don’t you understand that?” You explained to him. He nodded slowly, still keeping his eyes trained to the ground.

“Well if you do, I don’t understand why you’re so adamant on keeping me in here with you,” you continued. Now he faced you, then he looked to the door.

“He’s waiting for you,” Yangyang mutters. “He’s right outside that door. I lied to him and told him that you were hiding in here, what was I supposed to say? None of us could find you anywhere in the Sector, and the person who saw you last was long dead. This was the only place we hadn’t checked. I got here and I locked the door _really_ tight, no one can get in now. But he must be fuming, he stopped trying to kick down the door decades ago.”

“He? Who’s he?” You pressed.

“Why can’t you listen to me for once, (Y/N)? I just… I don’t want you to go through that trouble again… If you had just listened to me and stayed home none of us would be in this position right now! But no, here we are. Here _I_ am,” Yangyang frowns, his tone was notably lower, as if making a deliberate effort to keep whoever was outside in the dark about your conversation. “He’s always been a problem, in this timeline and in mine, and I’d bet in the others too… you’re too good for him, (Y/N), why do you always have to settle? Why can’t you just—” he stopped talking once he noticed your confused expression. 

“Who am I even kidding? You don’t even remember who I am…” he finally muttered and retracted further under the table. You took a moment to process what he was saying, you never really noted it until now, but Yangyang had always been rather clever actually, it was easily masked by the insanity that plagued him day by day in this Sector, but his intuition was unrivaled. Or at least, that’s what you had observed from him during your time here.

“Are you talking about Xiaojun?” You asked. It was the only plausible theory, someone who wronged him in his timeline, it was the only reason you could think of that would be the source of his unreasonable hatred for the other inmate.

“Yes,” the answer was quiet, but it was enough. “(Y/N)… he’s actually dangerous. Did you know that? That’s not just because of my feelings about him… (Y/N) I caught him printing your photos out, did you know that? He was putting them into his notebook, that stupid one that’s falling apart. And it wasn’t accidental, he set the cameras to take photos every ten minutes! I ran to the Warden’s Office to find them and sure enough they were sitting on top of the printer… I was going to take them to Kun when I heard you trying to come in, I thought you were Xiaojun so I panicked and hid them somewhere before hiding,” he says hurriedly. It was such a whirlwind of information you were afraid that he was speaking faster than you could fully comprehend. 

“What?” You quickly zipped your mouth shut when three consecutive poundings at the door rang out. Yours and Yangyang’s heads turned to the door, Yangyang more visibly shaken than you, of course, and all you could think of was the worse.

“Yangyang? (Y/N)? Are you both in there? We have to go _now_ , the Sector’s going to shut down at any minute!” It was Xiaojun, Yangyang was right. But he didn’t sound upset or hurried at all, if anything, he sounded concerned. “Please! I just want to get everyone out alive! I’m sure you all think the same, right?” You looked down to Yangyang, who only shook his head slowly.

“He’s planning something big, (Y/N), and whatever it is, it involves you,” Yangyang shudders and looks at the door again as Xiaojun knocks on it again. “Please, just trust me and stay here, okay? Just for a little bit longer, and maybe he’ll get bored and leave,” he pleads. You had to admit, the fact that Yangyang opted to stay hiding in here rather than to go out and break Xiaojun’s neck surprised you, you had known Yangyang to be the type to never pass on a fight with the other inmate, and thus you started to take his words more seriously at this sudden change of events. “(Y/N), you have to believe me! It has since even _before_ you came to the Sector.” At that statement, the shouting thoughts in your mind came to a halt. Surely, he meant about that plan Xiaojun told you about, the one that involved getting you out safely, right? How much _did_ Yangyang know?

“Yangyang, wait, what do you mean since _before_ I came to the Sector?”

“Oh, you didn’t know? I thought Kun would’ve told you… or something,” Yangyang rocks back and forth slowly, chewing on the inside of his cheek. A sudden playful smile appears on his face and he leans towards you, cupping his hands around his mouth as if he was about to call out. “Can I tell you a secret?” He asks just barely above a whisper. You thought about it for a moment, his sudden change in mood threw you off guard, you had to admit, but it was something common for the inmate, or at least that’s what you had been told.

“Yes,” you hoped that you wouldn’t regret that decision any time soon. He gestured for you to lean closer, and you obliged, tilting your head slightly so you could hear him more clearly above the white noise and the distant sounds of screaming pipes.

“Xiaojun killed the last Warden. Chopped his head clean off. And shoved him down the industrial grinder,” he interrupted himself with a stifled laugh, turning away from you briefly as a courtesy, but soon returned to complete his so called ‘secret,’ “and he wants to do the same to everyone else.”

Silence.

It was like everything stopped all around you, the static, the pipes, the fires, none of it mattered right now. 

Xiaojun pounded on the door again, and you stared at it.

“Look, I can’t stall anymore! We have to go now if we want to get out of here alive!” He shouts. You looked over at Yangyang again, who was now looking at you with curious eyes.

“What will you do, (Y/N)?” He asks.

“What evidence do you have?”

“Why don’t you ask him?” He nudges his head towards the door. You thought about it for a moment, he did say that he owed the Warden, did he not? Was this what he meant? You walked up to the door.

“Xiaojun?” You leaned your ear against it.

“Yeah?”

“Did you kill my father?” Again, more silence. You threw the door open, and whilst Yangyang stepped out from under the table Xiaojun stood surprised at the door. His mouth moved to form words but only small instances of gibberish came out, as if he didn’t know how to answer your question. “It’s a simple yes or no question, Xiaojun. Did you or did you not kill my father?” Xiaojun sealed his mouth shut. You took his prolonged silence as a yes.

“Wait, let me explain myself,” he holds his hands up, but you step further into the Interrogation Room.

“Why? What could _possibly_ justify that?” You continued inching into the room, while Xiaojun chose to stay outside. He stared at Yangyang, a bit of fear etched behind his expression.

“(Y/N), I need you to trust me right now, just step out of the room,” he gestures for you to come closer and out of the Interrogation Room, but you shook your head. Xiaojun clenched his jaw and held back his frustration. “(Y/N), listen to me and get out of there! I told you before that the last key event is only theoretical, right?” He points at Yangyang.

“Why can’t you just listen to me?! In the original timeline he killed both of us in here!” He shouts. You turned to Yangyang, who was holding a broken pipe that he must have picked up from the corner at one point.

“Yangyang _don’t_!” You ran up to him and he swung, the world around you turning black.

~

Another knock at the door.

That’s weird, back so soon? You had only left that morning, Yangyang looked at the clock on his microwave and, sure enough, it was long past midnight. What could have occurred over the span of a day? A lot, now that he thought about it. Again, there was a soft knock, and he was certain it was you at the door. You’re the only person who’d arrive in the early hours of the morning unannounced like this. Not to mention the weather, a clap of thunder sounded throughout the apartment and more concerned thoughts popped into Yangyang’s mind. Yangyang splashed water on his face and brushed the petals under the rug, he’d deal with those after you left, and he walked to his front door. He opened it tiredly, and you had on a forced smile.

“I, uh… I left something here last night,” you mustered out. You were drenched head to toe, and he figured that you must’ve walked here. At this time of night, the buses were out of service and he knew for a fact that you couldn’t drive, it was the only result he could’ve thought of. There was no way you walked five blocks in a thunderstorm to just pick up something you had lost.

“You’re lying, aren’t you?” Yangyang was tired of this back and forth friendship, he was tired of just going along with everything that you told him, it was time he smacked some sense back into you, that was his job as your best friend. You had clearly become too deluded in this toxic image of a relationship to understand that for yourself. He regretted his words as soon as you looked to the ground, your shoulders shaking slightly as you tried to hold back tears. You took a step towards him and rested your head against his chest, unmoving. Yangyang released the breath he had been holding and wrapped his arms around you slowly, wordlessly asking for your consent and figuring you’d shrug him off if anything. And right as he pulled you just slightly closer, the waterworks started. “That bad?”

“It’s over…”

His lips quirked up into a smile, but as soon as he realized how depraved that was, it fell back into a frown. 

“What do you mean?”

“We’re done… Dejun and I are over…” you said between hiccups. Yangyang looked around you before ushering you inside. Drops of water fell from your hair and onto the wooden floors, the apartment remained dark save for the occasional flashes of lightning in the sky. Yangyang pulled a towel out from a nearby cupboard and wrapped you in it, leading you to the couch.

“Wait here,” he says quickly, marching off to his room. He grabbed yet another towel and a change of clothes for you. You had stayed over so many times that he had a few spares for you, and honestly he should’ve returned them, whenever he looked at them his lungs tended to act up the most, but that was the least of his concerns at the moment. He walked back to the main room, flipping the lights on in the process, and saw you as he left you. He sat on the coffee table in front of you and draped the second towel over your head. “Tell me if I’m hurting you, okay?” You nodded slightly and he started drying your hair, trying to get a majority of the droplets out. The whole exchange happened in silence, neither of you saying anything.

“I’m sorry…” you mumbled, your gaze still fixated on your fiddling hands on your lap.

“For what?”

“I just had nowhere else to go,” you sobbed quietly. Yangyang paused momentarily before continuing again, moving the towel further down your hair and patting it dry.

“You always have a place here,” he reminds you. He always said it to you, and he never understood why you didn’t just _get it_. If you called him he’d come running easily, and no matter what you did he’d take you in easily. You had done the same for him years ago, and he’d always be indebted for that. Surely, what he’s doing now is nothing in comparison to what you and your family did years ago. “What about your parents? Do they know what happened?”

“You know how much my dad liked Dejun… I can’t compromise any of their positions in the station, I’d never do that,” you explained. Right, Yangyang almost forgot. Dejun was one of the officers working under your father. Talk about a coincidence, right? Yangyang pulled the towel off of your hair and handed the extra pair of clothes to you, which you took generously. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, of course,” Yangyang answers. He watches you leave and walk into the bathroom, and finally he found an opportunity to run to the sink. He pulled the cover off of the grinder and let out all the petals he had been swallowing down since you had arrived, and soon enough the sink was filled nearly to the brim. Yangyang felt his arms shake, and ultimately he just gave up, collapsing to the ground with a loud thud, pulling down an array of items that were just on the countertop and watching them clatter all around him. All the commotion, luckily, was masked behind the loud rumbling of thunder. Yangyang looked up at the white ceiling and sighed, thinking back to that letter that coincidentally landed in front of him. He opened the cupboard under the sink and pulled the flyer out of the trash can, reading through it again. He had given Dr. Li a quick call to discuss the fees and meeting times, but he still had second thoughts and thus opted to throw the flyer away but after that event maybe he should go to the clinic tonight, he wasn’t entirely sure if he could make it through the night to be honest.

No, wait, what was he thinking? How could he just remove all of these feelings he had for you? ten years of friendship gone at the slice of a scalpel, it wasn’t worth it. He threw the flyer back in the trash can and pulled himself off the floor, picking up all the items that had fallen, and ran the water. He turned the grinder on and watched the petals fall through the drain. He shook his head and shut it off right as you walked back in the room.

“Hey, thanks,” you said to him, your tone noticeably higher. He was glad that at least one of you sorted your thoughts out already. “Honestly, I feel so much better now that I’m out of that relationship, like a weight’s been lifted, you know? Actually, when I first got here, my first thought was ‘Oh, would Dejun like it if I was here?’ can you believe that? That used to be so routine for everything I did, can you believe that?” Actually yes, he can.

“No, really?” He lied. He grabbed a DVD case from the shelf and popped it into the TV. He turned it on and sat next to you. “Cold?”

“A little…”

“Alright, be right back,” he stood up again and grabbed a blanket from the closet. “I can’t believe you walked here.”

“Pretty stupid of me, huh?”

“No. Well, I mean, yeah. Yeah, it’s dangerous. Someone could’ve hit you with their car, or something,” he frowns.

“Like I’m _that_ unlucky,” you laughed. He threw the blanket over you and sat next to you again, pressing play on the remote. You pulled the blanket out of your head and shot him a playful look, and you finally relaxed, leaning against him slightly. Yangyang swallowed down the oncoming flowers and cleared his throat.

“Hey, did you grab your things from Dejun’s apartment already?”

“Oh, no, I told him I’d come by in the morning to get them, why?”

“Oh, just curious,” Yangyang pulls his phone out secretly and sets a timer for ten seconds. As soon as it went off, he turned it off quickly and held it to his ear. “Sorry, give me a second,” he covers the speaker.

“Sure.”

“Hi, yeah, what’s up?” He waits for particularly nothing. “Right now?” He looks over at the microwave clock again and frowns, he had to sell it, after all.

“Yeah, I’ll go pick it up really quick,” Yangyang feigns hanging up and shoves his phone back in his pocket. “Hey, I’ll be right back, alright?”

“What’s up?”

“You know that lab I’m interning at?”

“The physics one? With your hot supervisor?”

“Ew, don’t call Kun hot.”

“He’s a total DILF, Yangyang, how can I not?”

“Ew! Stop it!”

“I’m newly single, let me simp.”

“Ugh, forget it,” Yangyang rolled his eyes. “But anyway, the apparent ‘DILF’ just dumped a bunch of work on me, so I’m going to have to go pick that up really quick. Stay here and warm up, yeah?” Yangyang plugged the cord into the outlet and handed you the remote.

“Heated blanket?” You gasped.

“Yeah, I blew last week’s salary on it,” Yangyang laughed. “Totally worth it though, I’ll be back. Stay here.”

“Sure, stay safe!” You waved at him and he shot you a quick smile and left, locking the apartment behind him.

Yangyang twirled the car keys in his hand, staring at the door in front of him. He drove here out of random, really. He meant to just step out for a bit to not pass out in his own apartment, but he had no idea why he was here now.

The neon ’24 Hours’ sign flashed in his peripherals, he could feel his heart pumping while he rested his hand on the clinic’s door handle. Dr. Li had told him that the operation would be quick and efficient, an hour at the longest. He would only have to relax and let him do his job. But he was warned of the risks of losing all memories entirely. Imagine how confused his new self would be to return home and see who was once his everything sitting on his couch. Someone so important to him suddenly becoming a stranger. Yangyang shook his head again and left quickly, pushing out all thoughts of the operation out of his head and stepped into his car again. He started the ignition and left quickly. He didn’t even want to think about why he showed up there in the first place. 

He found himself driving to yours and Dejun’s apartment… Or, Dejun’s apartment now. He was just pulling into the parking structure when the repeating screech of tires continuously echoed from the concrete walls.

“Someone must be having a rough night,” Yangyang rolled his eyes, imagining a car making continuous sharp turns throughout the rather large structure. But then, right as he was turning onto the floor closest to the apartment, a loud crash resounded, and he found himself slamming on the breaks when he got to the wreckage, but too soon too late, the other driver quickly reversed and Yangyang ended up crashing into the side of the car. Luckily, it wasn’t a full-on crash, if anything it just pushed the car off to the side but the other driver seemed somewhat fine. Yangyang stepped out of the car as fast as he could and ran over to the other driver, paying no mind to the items and clothes that were scattered everywhere, some drenched in deep red and some untouched. “Dejun? Is that you?” Yangyang knocked on the car, but Dejun remained knocked out. Yangyang pulled the car open, the small crash had made it possible, and dragged Dejun out, laying him out on the floor and making sure the man was still alive before Yangyang called emergency services. 

It was then he finally took the time to look at the scene around him. He stared at the creeping scarlet that was spattered on the hood of Dejun’s car, and Yangyang shuddered. How was he going to explain to you that Dejun just killed someone? 

Turns out, he wouldn’t have to.

You can’t tell anything to a dead person.

You can’t tell anything to a dead person.

You can’t tell anything to a dead person.

Yangyang kept repeating it to himself, over and over again.

He only meant to get drinks with Dejun, try to get some closure from each other on your death anniversary of everything. He didn’t mean for it to get this far, he didn’t mean to kill him, no. He didn’t think any sane person would. He didn’t mean to kill Dejun but…

You can’t tell anything to a dead person.

He didn’t mean to kill him.

He meant to keep Dejun alive long enough to act onto him the pain he had felt for a year ten fold but… He got too excited, it would seem, but, of course…

You can’t tell anything to a dead person.

~

You woke up in the med bay, the area was surprisingly well put together despite the chaos that had occurred in it throughout the duration of your visit.

“Oh, you’re up,” you followed the voice. Guanheng stood next to you, he was focused on the bottle of pills in his hand. He looked down at you, a quick flash of nostalgic recognition on his face before refocusing on the bottle. “I don’t think we’ve been acquainted yet. I’m Juni.” She spoke in a higher tone, still natural and not at all forced. You briefly remembered Kunhang talking about her.

“(Y/N).”

“I know,” she replies. She takes out two pills and hands it to you alongside a glass of water. “Drink up, after a hit like that, you’ll need it.”

“Who took me here?”

“Yangyang. He says he’s sorry for hitting you, when he panics he goes into Fight or Flight and it’s most often Fight,” Juni explains. “I’m certain that you’re curious about the second half of the Sector that’s currently _on fire_ , but fear not, Kun did one good think in his life and was able to activate the emergency measures in time. Bad news is the fire already reached the entrance before the heat resistant glass was able to contain it.”

“So we’re stuck here?”

“Unfortunately,” Juni sighs. She pulls up a chair and slouches on it. She swallows three of the pills and leans back. “This is all giving me a damn migraine, I don’t front for, what, a month and this happens? Every man in here is such a barbarian, do you know how much I had to clean this room alone? I didn’t even know you were here until Nana came crying to me about it,” she grumbles. 

“Sorry…”

“Don’t be, you did nothing wrong, love, you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“Where’s Xiaojun?”

“No where to be found, he wasn’t in the Interrogation Room when I went there to collect him,” Juni answers. “But that should be the least of our worries, shouldn’t it?”

“Right,” you answered. You looked around the room, staring at the shattered glass on all of the cupboards. Then, your eyes centered on the flower vase next to you. “Where did this come from?”

“Oh, I took them from Guanheng’s cell. This room was horribly stuffy, so I took the liberty of adding them,” Juni took the flower into her hand and twirled it softly. “Do you know what these are?”

“No, but I recognize them. My father got them for me when my mother died.”

“Fitting, they represent mortality. When I first saw them in Guanheng’s cell I thought of it as some sick joke,” Juni frowns. “Death seems to follow that boy to no end. Yet he himself unwillingly escapes from it,” her gaze was distant for a moment.

“But that’s beside the point,” she places the flower down gently. “Tell me, love, how’s your head?”

“Much better now, thank you.”

“Wonderful,” she holds the bottle up. “These are Guanheng’s migraine medication, surprisingly does well in preventing switches, I feel bad but I don’t think any other alter could handle this situation,” Juni admits.

“That’s fair,” you nodded. “Juni, can I ask you a question?”

“Go ahead.”

“How long have I been asleep?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe a good half an hour? Time’s rather skewed here,” Juni hums. “I’ll be right back, love, do stay in here. You need your rest for now.” Juni stood up and left quickly, but you didn’t miss the way she grabbed onto a scalpel before leaving. Whatever was outside, you figured, wasn’t something you needed nor wanted to see.

Silence, it seemed to follow you now. Despite the chaos you knew for a fact that was happening on the whole other side of the Sector, part of you was glad that it was contained behind a countermeasure, but your more realistic side reminded you of the flimsy nature of heat resistant glass, especially with factors such as gas build up on the other side, the glass was, at most, a time bomb. If anyone was unfortunate enough to be near it at the wrong time, surely it would explode into fragments. You stared at the indigo flower next to you, you were shocked that life could exist in this hell, but the Sector did work in mysterious ways. You wondered what Guanheng’s cell looked like, it must have been somewhat nice if it had flowers growing in it, right?

Your line of thoughts was merely a distraction, something to keep you from thinking about everything going on, and you realize this. You just didn’t want to accept the truth just yet. The thought of spending even a moment more with these psychos scared you to the core. A small _bang_ resounded from the Sector, something you had become accustomed to hearing, but not something you were comfortable with. You feared the worst, had the glass already broken? Had a pipe burst? Were you going to die sooner than expected? All this Sector had ever done for you was fill your mind with worries, some more outlandish than the rest, but in a place where reality didn’t exactly follow the rules, could you blame yourself? Soon, your brief thoughts were interrupted, as the door opened and the familiar inmate arrived.

“Hi,” Yangyang, looked hurried.

“Hello,” you sat up slightly. He eyed the vase next to you and ran up to it, throwing it against a wall. “Hey—”

“I fucking hate _ipomea_ flowers,” he mutters. “Look, we have to go, like, now,” Yangyang grabs your hand and yanks you out of bed.

“Hey, wait, hold on, you’re going too fast,” your head started to spin more.

“No! No time, I don’t know how to explain this but I think I just saw someone kill Guanheng.”

“What do you mean you _think_?!”

“I don’t know he kind of just, like, _died_.”

“Yangyang, people don’t just _die_.”

“Okay he was shot!”

“By who?!”

“I don’t know! I ran before I could find out!” You both run into the hallway and dart down as fast as you could. “You know, when someone gets _shot_ you’re not really thinking about seeing who did it.”

“Yeah, I know, that’s fair. I would’ve ran like hell too,” you swallowed back a scream while you and Yangyang ran. “Yangyang, who’s on this side?”

“The only ones I know for sure are here were Guanheng and Kun.”

“And it wasn’t Kun?”

“Kun can’t aim for shit.”

“How do you know that?”

“I don’t think right now’s a good time to answer that,” he admits quickly. You both make a sharp turn, running straight into the glass separating the West from the East Wing. “Oh no, come on, now is not the time to run into this dead end,” Yangyang banged on the glass.

“Are you crazy?!”

“Yeah, a little—”

“If you hit that glass too hard it’ll burst, you psycho!” You pulled him off. “Then we’re both fucking dead.” Yangyang’s face went grim before he stepped back.

“Oh my god, we either get shot or we burn to death, I don’t know what’s worse.”

“I think getting shot is faster.”

“I mean it depends on where you get shot,” Yangyang answers. The conversation deviates easily with him, you almost forgot that. It did well to distract you from this impossible situation.

“With that logic, we’d probably survive if we ran through the fire.”

“Yeah, there’s, like, a small path there,” Yangyang points at the small parting of the flames. “Still looks like hell though.”

“Bet it feels like that too,” you frowned.

“Probably, yeah,” Yangyang glances down the hallway across the glass, staring at the entrance that would peek from behind the flames every so now and then. Once the conversation dropped was when the migraine hit again. You held onto your head while you swayed, or was that just your mind playing tricks on you? You really didn’t want to know, but when a bullet hit the glass and ricocheted into your shoulder, you figured that the migraine could wait. “Oh shit,” Yangyang’s expression dropped and he yanked a loose pipe from the wall, a loud alarm blaring above you.

_‘Oxygen supply damaged. Repair as soon as possible.’_ The same message repeated over and over again. Yangyang swung at the glass.

“Duck when I tell you to!” His voice was distant, but still distinct.

“Okay,” you repeated. Honestly, Yangyang was the last person you wanted to trust, but he was also the one who _wasn’t_ shooting at you so at this point you just had to pick your poison. You looked behind you, trying to make sense of who it was that was holding the gun in the first place, but you couldn’t tell at all. The ongoing headache mixed with the unbearable pain in your shoulder blocked most of your rational senses, and at the worst time too. “Duck!” Whether you actually moved willingly, or if it was the way your head suddenly felt right heavy, you fell to the floor just as the glass exploded behind you. The reacting wasn’t as big as you had anticipated, you were, relatively, unharmed save for the few shards of glass that were now embedded into your arm.

At this point it took a lot in you to not throw yourself into the flames, ever since you had chosen Yangyang’s door it was just hit after hit, physical and mental alike, and you didn’t know how much more of it you could take. But you squinted your eyes at the figure approaching you and, maybe it was just your will to want to keep his image as someone you could trust, but you tried your hardest to see someone else other than Ten. You didn’t want to believe that he turned into some monster, but most of it was because you recognized that it would be your fault if anything if he did. Yangyang grabbed onto your hand and pulled you up.

“Now’s not the time to doze off, (Y/N), time to go,” he ushers you into the East Wing, albeit reluctantly, but you giving him some hope that there was a possibility of surviving probably sparked something in him. Maybe once all of this was over you’d try to make sense of his brain.

“Yangyang, is it just me or is the fire curving?”

“Oh my god, you’ve lost it.”

“I genuinely cannot make sense of what’s happening,” your head was still spinning and it was just worse from earlier. Yangyang looked behind the both of you for a moment before he stopped you. 

“I apologize ahead of time,” Yangyang says.

“For what?” Then he slapped you across the face. Things slowly started to go back into focus and you blinked your eyes a couple of times, partially to process what just happened and partially to refocus the rest of the world.

“Okay let’s go!” You both started running again. You started passing checkpoints that you could easily recognize, the Boiler Room, Xuxi’s cell, Kun’s cell, it was strange seeing them all in succession, and also strangely nostalgic. In a few moments, the Sector and everything in it will be no more.

“Is he still following us?”

“Yeah, yeah, I don’t know why he wants to kill us so bad but I really don’t want to— Oh god, okay, Sicheng!”

“What about him?”

“Uh, no, don’t look,” he pushes you forward and keeps you on track, by the time you looked back you were long gone from the scene. “I’m never doing cardio again after this,” he spoke to fill in the tense moments, and as much as you wanted to tell him to shut up, his attempts were appreciated. You patted down the embers on your shirt, everything only got more intense the further in you got, which made sense, now that you thought about it. It was at its worse by the Boiler Room, and with every turn the intensity would fluctuate, some areas even being entirely undisturbed. With every turn, something seemed rather off, something that you were certain that even Yangyang noticed at one point.

“We’re running in circles,” you finally said.

“Yeah, that’s the fifth time I saw that exit sign,” Yangyang agrees.

“Maybe there’s just multiple signs…”

“No, it’s hanging off of its right hinge, but I don’t know how that’s possible, I’ve changed the direction we’ve went every time I’ve seen it,” Yangyang breathes heavily, no doubt the oxygen levels have only been depleting since you entered the East Wing. Soon you both stumbled onto the undisturbed area again, the fire stopped at a certain line on the floor, unwilling to cross it. And any ember that escaped was quickly extinguished. “There’s something here, look for it,” Yangyang ran to the left wall first, moving his hand along the wall.

The Sector worked in ways that no one could understand, that was something both your father and Ten had explained to you and, at this point, you were starting to believe it. No, you _did_ believe it, you’d be insane to not to with everything that was happening. Your father once described it to you that he felt like the Sector had a mind of its own, leading him to problematic situations faster than it would normally take him, coincidentally placing items that he might’ve lost a while before, would show up on his desk right when he turned around. You remembered your mother insisting that it was just the result of too many sleepless nights in a row, but you were always fascinated by it. So maybe the thought of the Sector placing you in a loop wasn’t entirely outlandish to you.

Your hand brushed past a metal sheet that was slightly raised from the wall, and you had a feeling that you found the jackpot. You pushed it into the wall first, then it bounced forward revealing the room inside. The metal box inside taunting you more now than ever before.

“Yangyang, I found it,” you stepped in first, and he followed you, closing the door behind him. You caught your breath, taking your time with it, as long as you were in here you had to be relatively safe, right? But as you regained your senses, everything came crashing down you. A sudden flash of memories mixed with the weight of what could only be another timeline sent your thoughts into war with itself. And the only sane thing you could think of was to take the silver key out and push it into the metal box, however this proved difficult with you unfocused vision. Yangyang grabbed hold of your hand, pushed the key in, and twisted it. Right as you were on the brink of unconsciousness, a bright light filled the room, engulfing you entirely, until you finally shut your eyes.

~

“Yangyang, can you get the door already?” You lazily tried to push him out of bed, but he only groaned in response.

“Five more minutes,” he turned around and buried his face into the pillow.

“If I hear that goddamn doorbell one more time—”

“It’s your turn to get it anyway, I got it last time,” Yangyang yawns.

“Please, I’m so sleepy…”

“That’s your fault for not sleeping,” Yangyang jabbed your side playfully.

“Screw you, I’ve been having nightmares lately, I’ll have you know,” you grumbled. Yangyang looked over at you.

“Nightmares?”

“Yeah, they’re freaky stuff, Yang. Sometimes I wake up and still feel like I’m on fire.”

“Fire? Like… from the fireplace?”

“I forgot that you’re stupid when you’re half asleep,” you pecked his cheek sweetly. “You’re lucky I love you, Liu.”

“I really am,” Yangyang agrees, still half asleep. He feels you get off of the bed, and the muted squeaking of the door opening signaled that you had left the room. Yangyang turned over and stared at the white ceiling of his apartment and pinched himself.

Yup, still reality. He wasn’t dreaming.

He opened his nightstand drawer and pulled out the silver key, slightly seared at the edges and filled with scratches, it looked more like a paperweight at this point. He pushed himself off of his bed and opened his window, staring at the busy streets below. Without another thought for himself or anyone else, he dropped the key out of the window, watching it descend about two stories until he couldn’t track it in the daylight anymore. He silently hoped that no one was inconvenienced because of it, but if it was it wasn’t his problem.

When the light had subsided, Yangyang found himself sitting on the walkway outside of his apartment again, the letter still sitting on the ground in front of him. Yangyang stared at it until another gust of wind blew it away, and he breathed a sigh of relief, which triggered another bout of petals to work their way up. Right, he had almost forgotten about that. After you died initially he was seemingly cured, by default he guessed, but now that he was back here, throwing up flowers.

Not a good look for him, no way.

Either way, he was able to stop the chain of events that happened next, he was able to convince you to break up with Dejun that night, actually, with was able to stop the accident from happening the next day, he was cured of this horrid disease, and the rest was history. He was somewhat disappointed that you didn’t remember anything, actually. He was a little upset that it was only him sounding like a crazy person explaining to his therapist, coincidentally a much too familiar Dr. Guanheng, about his “nightmares” that involved him being an inmate and everyone he knew, save for you, were also inmates. Anyone would understand why that sounded insane. 

“Oh! Kun! How nice of you to come visit, do you want to come in?”

“Ugh,” Yangyang groaned again and grabbed your pillow, burying his face into it. He almost forgot about your face crush on his supervisor. It was horribly awkward especially now.

“Yangyang! Get over here,” you called him.

“On my way,” he called back. He walked out of his room and walked over to the front door. Kun waved brightly at him, and Yangyang tried to adjust his eyes to the light.

“Liu, good morning,” Kun smiles. He hands Yangyang a suitcase, which he accepted wordlessly. “We need those calculations by tonight.”

“Like, 11:59 pm tonight?”

“Let’s just say as soon as possible,” Kun nods. “Just call if you need anything.”

“Sure,” Yangyang shuts the door.

“Hey, that was rude!”

“He’s only nice since you opened the door,” he laughs sleepily and slams the suitcase on the kitchen counter. 

“What’s this all about anyway?” You tapped the leather briefcase.

“I don’t know much of the details, but our boss said he had a theory about dimensional travel, or some shit like that.”

“Dimensional travel?”

“Yeah.”

“Is that possible?”

“I guess, but Na is really interested in the case, I don’t know why Kun didn’t just have him take it,” Yangyang yawns. “But, I’ll deal with that later,” he grabs your hand and drags you onto the couch with him, he holds you in his lap and nuzzles his face into your neck and you flashed a sweet smile.

“Let’s go back to bed, I have no clue how the hell Kun can be such a morning person…” he dozes off easily, he has never been the type to wake up early, after all. And as long as he’s with you, he’d always feel like he could fall asleep quickly. He’d deal with your nightmares later, he silently hoped that removing the key would let you finally rest easy, but he should prepare just in case.

You, on the other hand, ran your fingers through his hair quietly, waiting for him to fall asleep. You thought back to that continuous series of nightmares that came to you every night, and you tried your best to make sense of them. It was eerily like what Yangyang was talking about with his therapist, you didn’t mean to overhear, but you couldn’t help it. Maybe your nightmares were just a result of hearing Yangyang’s stories too many times, now you’re just paranoid and maybe you just heard it enough to feel like you yourself were in it. But that was preposterous, not possible at all.

But you couldn’t stop thinking about what your father kept saying in them. No matter what it was that you were doing in your dreams, you’d always hear him saying it on repeat, but you had no clue what it meant.

**_‘You can only save one.’_ **


End file.
